


Back in the Fire

by JLenon



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Derek/Dexter friendship, High School, Hurt!Derek, M/M, Slow Build, Stiles/Dexter friendship, back in the past, druid magic, hale/argent war, lying!Stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-08
Updated: 2014-03-23
Packaged: 2017-12-28 20:42:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 32,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/996454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JLenon/pseuds/JLenon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dexter decided to do a spell. He wanted to see how his birth parents were like. But when he ask Stiles for help, things turn out way different than what they planned. They ended up in the past, where a teenager Derek Hale was sneaking around with a hunter girl and all his family was alive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there \o/  
> Just some information that may help understand this fic: The original character described here, Dexter Coburn, it's introduced in my other fic, The Death of Dexter Coburn. But you don't really need to read that to be able to read this. You only have to know that Dexter is a druid. He was left by his birth parents at the Nemeton and the Sheriff and a deputy found him. The woman adopted him and he was a big friend of Stiles and Scott as a kid. When he was 11 years old, his mother died and he left town with his father. Five years later, he came back (season 3) and found out everything about werewolves, druids and all.

“I need your help.” Dexter says shaking Stiles body, trying to make the boy wake up.  
  
“Whaaa…” is the only thing the other manage to say, since he is still pretty much drowning in his own saliva, his left arm out of the bed and a big geometry book under his pillow.  
  
“I need your help.” Dexter repeats with the same ‘come on, fast!’ face he had before, thinking how was possible for the guy to sleep like that.  
  
“Oooooookay…” Stiles sits down, shake his head and look to the boy in front of him. “You can talk now.”  
  
“I want to do a spell.” He says very carefully, expecting the exactly negative response he gets.  
  
“You don’t…”  
  
“I know. I’m not prepared, it’s too soon. But Deaton is teaching me a lot and I can’t be without using magic for long, you know that. And it’s for a good cause.” He speaks trying to be convincible. “Please?”  
  
Stiles look at him and shake his head. He really don’t want to do it. But Dexter is not the kind of guy that asks for help very often.  
  
“What do you need? There is no sacrifice, right?” He is scared all of the sudden.  
  
“No! I don’t go killing people to do magic, Stiles, come on!” Dexter replies a little offended.  
  
“I was just asking.” Stiles assures him. “So, what do you want to do, anyway?”  
  
“I want to see my mother.”  
  
Stiles stands up, his hand in his head and his mouth wide open. “Excuse me?”  
  
“There is this spell…” Dexter says slowly. He has this idea for so long in his head that talk about it was hard. It sounded impossible for so long and now… “In this spell, I can see what happened in a determine time and place. So, since I know my mother, my birth mother, left me in the Nemeton, we could go there, use the spell and see what happened that night.”  
  
“Dex, that is…” Stiles sighs. “Are you sure? I mean, we know nothing about her. She was a druid and we know so little about them…”  
  
“Exactly! I’m a druid and we know nothing about them. I need to know, Stiles. Because I’m sick of being without knowing everything. I need to know!”  
  
Now it is Dexter’s time to sit down. Stiles looks at him, one of his best friends, completely broken in front of him. He wanted to help, but that was… very weird and dangerous. Dexter clearly had some issues to solve and seeing his birth mother don’t seem like the way to solve them. However, he still have that pleading face that broke Stiles’ heart. And there is also the fact that, if Stiles had the opportunity to see his own mother, even if it was just for a minute, he would do anything.  
  
“Ok, I will help.” Stiles gives up at last. “But we can’t tell anyone, because they will be all worried and…”  
  
“Oh, yeah, no one can know. They would freak out and, honestly, it will be better if only you did it.”  
  
“Well, that really makes me happier.” He responds with the usual sarcasm in his voice. “What do you need me to do?”  
  
Dexter explains everything about the spell, that actually sounds pretty simple. All they have to do is use the right plants in a bowl full of water, a little blood from Dexter and the power of the Nemeton. After saying the appropriate words, the images would appear in the bowl and they would be able to see the past.  
  
Stiles follows Dexter to the Nemeton and can see that the guy was preparing for a while now.  
  
“You should had told me.” Stiles reprehends him.  
  
“Well, better to ask forgiveness than permission.” He shrugs, preparing the bowl.  
  
“Don’t do that anymore.” Stiles sits beside the big root of the tree. “What do I do, then?”  
  
“Well, your part is very simple.” Dexter is still arranging everything, so he don’t really look at Stiles. “I will say the words and, maybe… Maybe I will pass out.”  
  
“Come on!” Stiles protests.  
  
“Hear me out.” Dexter stops and face his friend. “When I said I want to do that to know more, I was not kidding. Yes, if I get to see my birth parents, I will be happy, but if I don’t, you will be able to see it and find something that can help me.” Stiles don’t seem too happy with it. “You know how demanding magic still is for me. There’s always a risk. If I did all that and there was no one to see… it would break my heart. I trust you. So, please, don’t complain, just do what I ask?”  
  
Stiles scratch his head, trying to remember how he always get stuck in situations like this.  
  
“Okay. But try not to pass out, please? I don’t want to be dragging you around and looking for the past in a bowl remember me too much of Harry Potter.”  
  
“Oh, please, don’t start with the Harry Potter jokes because is probably the only movie Scott saw in the last few years where there is not an explosion every 5 minutes. He has Harry Potter jokes all day long.” Dexter shook his head, tired.  
  
“Okay.”  
  
As the boy finish saying, Dexter sit in the Nemeton. He can feel the energy of the place already taking his body and he didn’t even began the spell. It has been like that since they saved the parents from the Darach. He was so connected to everything, especially to the Nemeton, that the magic was running like blood through his veins.  
  
Before start, Dexter looks at Stiles, whom has a reassuring face. He has no idea what the hell will happen, but he knows his friend needs his help. So he helps.  
  
Dexter speak the words and a strong wind blow the forest around them. He looks at Stiles again, continuing with the spell, and he can see the reassurance gone. Now it was straight up fear.  
  
When the words stop, both boys look at the bowl. There is nothing there. Until their faces splash in the water and they passed out.  
  



	2. Where are we?

Stiles is the first one to wake up and in that exactly second, he knows something is wrong. He looks around him and things are different. The forest is different. The Nemeton is different. The bowl, the car, nothing is there. The basement under the tree where the parents were locked up a few weeks ago was intact. They are totally screwed.  
  
He tries to wake Dexter, but the guy barely move. For a moment, he panics thinking maybe something happened to the guy, but when the other start to complain and shove him away, he knows the friend was just being lazy.  
  
“Wake up, son of a bitch, you got a spell to work out…” Stiles says shaking the other.  
  
“What are you talkin…” Dexter starts to complain again, but as soon as his eyes open, he wakes up. He notices the same things Stiles did. And he gets scared. “What the hell!? Where are we?”  
  
“In the Nemeton.” Stiles states the obvious.  
  
“But where is the car and our stuffs and… The shelter… What is going on?”  
  
“I don’t know, but if my suspicions are correct, you are a very bad druid and we are stuck in the past.”  
  
First of all, Dexter takes in how a sentence like that became something normal to them. After that, he sees that the other actually has a point. Then the panic happens.  
  
“But… the spell… how?”  
  
“Maybe you went a little overboard?” He suggests.  
  
“No, I didn’t. The all point of that spell was that it was little and harmless. But maybe…” He shakes his head, trying to make sense to that. “Maybe if something died around us, when we did the spell, it could use the energy and potentialized the stuff?” He asks. “I don’t know, I’m not that good at this stuff.”  
  
“Then why do it in the first place?” Stiles almost yells, using all his strength not to break the friend’s neck. “Just tell me, what are we gonna do now?”  
  
“We get back home. We do the same spell, it’s easy. We can get the stuff right here.” Dexter tries to calm the other down, while tries to keep himself calm too.  
  
“We don’t have a bowl.” He complains.  
  
“Can you stop? I’m just as fucked as you, so don’t be a crying baby and let’s solve this. It can be anything that hold water. We will also need a rabbit.”  
  
Stiles, who was already looking for something to the spell, stops what he is doing. He turns around and looks at his friend. “Are you gonna kill the rabbit?”  
  
“Do you prefer I kill you? Because I can manage that!” He snaps.  
  
“You put me in this crap! You don’t get to be mad at me ‘cause I’m already mad at you!”  
  
“It’s not my fault that we are here and…”  
  
They keep yelling at each other for a while until they realize it would not help anything. So they just get the things they need together, silently.  
  
Dexter is so disappointed with himself. He had one job, one chance to understand a little better about what was going on with him. How is he supposed to be this great druid if he can’t even see the past in a bowl? Any crap witch in the movies can.  
  
In the other side, Stiles just wants to kill his friend. He knew it was a bad idea. He knew it would not work out. Why doesn’t those peoples ever listened to him? Especially seeing how he was always right. But them, something just lights up in his head. If the shelter under the Nemeton is still built and they are really in the past…  
  
Stiles starts to run and Dexter is confused as hell. He yells the friend's name, but receives no answer. So he does what he knows he has to and starts to run after him.  
  
Stiles is way ahead of him, running with a speed he never saw before. After a while, he realizes the path they are taking. They are going to the Stilinski’s house. As soon as he understand the logic, he starts running as his life depended on this too.  
  
He finds Stiles seating in the floor, in the other side of the street, looking at the house he grew up in. He has this emotionless face that stops Dexter from saying anything. Maybe the fact that the guy can’t barely breathe helped in that department.  
  
“I remember this.” Stiles points to the house in front of them, where three kids are playing in the front yard. It is easy to notice the similarities. There are Stiles, Dexter and Scott when they were kids, playing in the Stilinski’s house. “I remember this day.”  
  
Dexter can see Ms. McCall going to the front yard too to see the kids. Mr. Coburn is already there, sitting in a distance.  
  
“I think your spell was pretty right in the day you wanted to go. Just got the year wrong.” Stiles explains.  
  
“This is my birthday…” Dexter remembers. “We didn’t do a big party because…” He swallows.  
  
“My mother died.” Stiles says still looking at the kids. “And I didn’t want to leave the house…”  
  
“So I made my parents get a cake and take there. I didn’t want to spend my birthday without my friends.”  
  
Dexter sits with Stiles and puts his arms around the friend.  
  
“My mother is dead. She has been dead for so long, but… I just…” At this time, the tears were already filling his face. “I thought maybe… I could see her. I could talk to her and…”  
  
“We can’t talk to anyone, we don’t know what it would do to the future. Or present or…”  
  
“I don’t care.” He says. “I just wanted to…”  
  
“I know.” He pulls his friend closer, tears filling his eyes too. “But…”  
  
He wants to talk. He wants to give a great speech about how Ms. Stilinski were be so proud of her son, of how an amazing friend Stiles is. But he can’t. Because in the second he starts to talk, someone opens the door in the Stilinski’s house, carrying a cake and singing happy birthday. She has a police uniform because she was late that day. Dexter’s mother is there, alive, singing for her little son, and Dexter can't do nothing but look and cry.  
  
x.x.x  
  
They don’t stay there very long. They know it would be weird two teenagers looking at a kid’s birthday party. It’s also too painful.  
  
They get back to the woods and, in less than an hour, have everything they need. Stiles finds an old pot thrown away near the river and the plants are the easier part. They use the knife that is still in Dexter pocket for the blood, throw it in the water and hope for the spell to work.  
  
Nothing.  
  
“You should do it again.” Stiles suggests.  
  
Nothing.  
  
“Maybe a little more blood?” Dexter tries.  
  
Nothing again.  
  
“Not even the weird wind, what the fuck!?” Stiles is frustrated. And angry.  
  
“And the rabbit didn’t helped.” Dexter shrugs. “Maybe is something else? It’s the same plants, so it should had the same effect... I don’t know.”  
  
He sits in the floor, tired. Even with the spell not working, he used all his energy trying.  
  
“We can try again… tomorrow.” Stiles says looking at the sky. “It’s getting dark and we can be here in the woods all night. Time to explore…” He has a fake smile in his face and Dexter stands up to follow him. It is a long walk to the city.  
  
The night is already fallen when Stiles and Dexter get to a diner. They are starving, of course.  
  
“Do you have any money?” Stiles asks.  
  
“Just a little.” Dexter gets his wallet and found something like 20, 30 dollars in it. “I’m using my father’s credit card for everything, remember?”  
  
“I must have less than that and we need a place to sleep. We can’t even get to a friend’s house because all our friends are little toddlers and…”  
  
“Actually, we have…” Dexter says with that bright in the eyes of someone who had an idea.  
  
“What are you talking about, we…”  
  
“Wow, it all makes sense now...”  
  
“Dex, I’m lost.”  
  
“We are not!” Dexter is excited, suddenly energy filling his all body. “We are so stupid, how we didn’t see this before?”  
  
“Dex, I swear to you…” Stiles is losing his patience. “You are talking like a crazy person.”  
  
“Think about it! Everything that happened, Peter, Scott being transformed, the kanima, the Alpha Pack and Jennifer… Those are all events lead by a single thing. Something that chanced enough lives to fuck everything up. And the timing…”  
  
“Dexter, stop!” The other obeys. “Breathe and then talk.”  
  
“We are here to change the future. And you know what happened that changed everything? The fire in the Hale’s. That is why we are here. We are here to save Derek’s family!”  
  
“This is ridiculous.” Stiles says shaking his head.  
  
“Not, it’s not. Look at the timing, your mother died in the same year the Argents burned the house. My birthday was just a few weeks after that. We are just in time.”  
  
“But we can’t change the future, haven’t you seen enough time traveling movies to know that it never works.” Stiles is frustrated, Dexter was the one that said early, that they couldn’t change anything.  
  
“But those are movies. That’s our live.” He grabs the friend’s shoulders and make him look into his eyes. “Stiles, do you know how it feels when you are so certain of something that even your bones believe in it? I know I put you in this situation, and I’m sorry, but… it all makes sense now.”  
  
“To you…” Stiles says, pushing Dexter’s arms. “Not to me. It doesn’t make sense at all.”  
  
“Pay attention. Peter was hurt in that fire, which means he would not go crazy, killing Laura and transforming Scott. That way, Derek would not kill his uncle and become an Alpha. He would not try to transform Jackson because, let’s face it, who wants to be connect to Jackson for all his life? The kanima would never existed, the Alpha Pack would not come to Beacon Hills for Scott and Jennifer wouldn’t have come either. Erica and Boyd would be fine, we would be fine. Maybe I wouldn’t even manifest my powers because she would not have killed me. This is perfect, Stiles, you know that.”  
  
Stiles swallows, trying to digest everything. It actually makes sense, which is scary as hell.  
  
“Okay, let me just try to understand what you are saying. You try a spell to see into the past. You get us in the past, to save the Hale family and change everything that happened. Why?”  
  
“Why what?”  
  
“Why we? Why now? How? And…”  
  
“I don’t know, Stiles, I have no idea. But does it matter?” He sighs. “I tried to get us home and I can’t. You saw that I tried. And if we are here, we can’t go back and you know something terrible is happening to Derek, our friend…”  
  
“Well...”  
  
“He is. Maybe he doesn’t know, but he is. Can you do it? Can you stay put and do nothing?”  
  
Dexter stares Stiles, putting all his cards in the table. They passed for so much already in so little time and he knows that is what they are supposed to do. But he couldn’t do it without Stiles.  
  
Stiles thinks about what he is agreeing to. Then he sighs because he knows there is not really a choice to be made. “Damn it! I’m never helping you with spells again!”  
  



	3. Meeting the Hales

After a little discussion, Dexter and Stiles are in front of the Hale’s house. It already looks intimidating and they didn’t even entered. Dexter takes a deep breath and looks at Stiles, trying to confirm if he knows what to do. As soon as they start, a lot of their communication would have to be through their eyes, since werewolves have pretty good ears.  
  
Stiles nods before ringing the bell.  
  
It didn’t take long for a brunette girl to answer the door. She has a smart-ass smile that made Dexter sure he would like her. She also appear older then they were, but still not an adult. “Hi.”  
  
“Hi.” Dexter answers. “Is this…” He tries to look as humble as he could. “Is this the Hale’s Pack house?”  
  
“I don’t…” The question take the girl by surprise. “Who are you?”  
  
“We need help.”  
  
The girl closes the door, leaving Stiles and Dexter in the outside questioning themselves. This is stupid, they should be trying to go home again. Maybe the spell would work or maybe they would just wake up and realize it was all a dream. But before Stiles could say anything, the door opens again.  
  
The brunette girl is there, but with her is the entire family, apparently. Dexter and Stiles look at each other, intimidated by everyone’s presence. In there he can see a boy, probably their age. He looks worried and makes a threatening face, like he trained for that. In his case, the idea didn’t sound as ridiculous as it should.  
  
Stiles notices the other peoples in front of them. There is another guy, taller than the young Derek. He has a very concentrated face, like trying to read their minds or something. Stiles looks down, wanting to look as fragile as possible. That is not so difficult for him.  
  
However, the most stunning presence is not of any of the kids. It’s the woman in front of them. She is tall, probably as old as Stiles’ father, but has a severity in her eyes and posture that made Stiles and Dexter give a step back. She looks at them, her eyes with a glance of red before coming to the natural color.  
  
“My name is Talia Hale. Who are you?” She says without any emotion.  
  
Stiles gasps. “My name is Stiles and this is Dexter." He says fast, like he wants to finish and go away.  
  
“White.” Dexter completes. “We are brothers and we came to ask for help. Can we… come in?”  
  
“This is my house and since you know we are a pack, you should know that any attempt to hurt anyone of this pack will mean instant death.”  
  
Stiles swallows. “This sounds… correct.”  
  
“We are okay with that.” Dexter assures her. “We don’t want any trouble.”  
  
“Then you can come in.”  
  
They open a space for them to go through. The girl from early guide them to the living room. The others follow them. The place is beautiful; Dexter has to admit. It’s all so clean he could eat in the floor, but it also has a lack of personality that makes him wonder about the kind of childhood Derek had. He finds a stand with family pictures. There is not a lot of them, but he could see one at the center that caught his attention. It was a family portrait, with everyone who was there, plus a man in the middle of it. He was holding hands with Ms. Hale.  
  
“You guys can seat.” The girl says, taking Dexter mind off the photos. “My name is Laura, by the way.”  
  
“Thanks.” Stiles says before he seats.  
  
The others didn’t take long to join them, looking as threatening as before.  
  
“You can explain yourselves now.” The woman command.  
  
“We are brothers.” Dexter started. “Adopted brothers. Our parents found me a couple of months after Stiles was born and they somehow liked me, I guess. But recently, we found out that I’m a druid. There were hunters at my door, telling my parents that they were in danger. They wanted to take me away, probably kill me or something.”  
  
“Hunters don’t go after druids.” Derek says not buying the tale.  
  
“We discovered that after, but we think that maybe… They wanted to use him? Like to make spells and caught others supernatural creatures?” Stiles suggests.  
  
“Anyway, my parents didn’t want to give me up. They said I was not home and that, even if I was, they would not let them take me. They…” Dexter put his acting skills in place, even some tears here and there. “They killed them. Stiles and I ran out of town. They didn’t found us for a little while, but…”  
  
Stiles looks at the other one, thinking he could get an Oscar. He is almost crying with the guy. But when he looks at the Hales, they are not so touched. “We have been on our own for a long time.” Stiles says, trying to put as much emotion as possible in his words. “Every time we get to a good place, they find us. I don’t know what they want with Dexter, but is something big. We need help. The last time they almost got us. I almost died.”  
  
He looks to the floor and Dexter puts a hand in his shoulder.  
  
“But why here?” The taller boy asks.  
  
“We heard about a pack that was dealing with hunters. They said that it was a family, that the Alpha in the pack was incredible strong and knew and respect the emissaries enough to give me a chance. To help me.”  
  
“They are wrong.” The woman says. “We don’t know you and we don’t…”  
  
“We just…” Dexter stops talking after seeing the severe look in the woman’s face. Maybe it was not the brightest idea to interrupt her. “I’m sorry. It’s just… We are desperate. We have nowhere to go, we have no one to turn to. I have this powers that I can’t barely understand and Stiles is human. He is in danger because of me. They know him, they know they can get to me through him, so I can’t leave him. This is too much for us to deal, we just need… help.”  
  
The woman looks at her sons and daughter, all seating side by side with her. Maybe something he said struck her, because she sounds more motherly next. Well, as motherly as an Alpha who can turn into a full wolf and has the power to break their necks in a heartbeat could be.  
  
“I would still be putting this pack in danger for strangers that we don’t know or trust.”  
  
“You can… see my memories.” Dexter says and that surprises everyone, Stiles included.  
  
Stiles turns to him. “What?!”  
  
“You know, with the claws in my neck and stuff. I saw it being done before. You can see that it’s all truth.”  
  
“That is not a good idea.” Stiles stress a little more.  
  
“This is painful and if not done properly, can make you go insane.” The woman warns him.  
  
“I know. But I don’t see any other option. We need you and you need to trust us. That is a risk I’m willing to take!” He replied firmly.  
  
Stiles looks at him, shaking his head. This is not a good idea was his obvious thought. But Dexter didn’t back down.  
  
Ms. Hale looks at the boy, impressed. “Okay, then. But Eliot should do it.”  
  
Now the surprise is in the other side of the room. Derek is the first one to get up.  
  
“He doesn’t know how to do that!”  
  
“Yes, I do.” The taller, apparently Eliot, answers. “And if she wants me to do it, you are not the one to say otherwise.”  
  
The family dynamics starts to unfold right before their eyes when the discussion went along. Eliot is defending the idea; while Laura and Derek seem really sure he is not cut out for the job.  
  
Stiles is scared at this point. If even the brother and sister of the guy don’t believe he can do it, how would he believe? And messing with Dexter head is such a bad idea. If they can see all the memories, they would see the lies. They would see that they are from the future and the all plan would be useless. What the fuck is Dexter thinking?  
  
Dexter tries to reassure Stiles, to say he knows what he was doing. Yes, he didn’t expected Derek’s big brother to be the one doing it, but maybe it was even better. Less experience, easier to fool.  
  
The discussion ends when Ms. Hale announces. “That’s enough! I didn’t ask for any opinion. Eliot will be the one doing it and there will be no more of this. Understood?”  
  
Derek and Laura don’t look very happy with this, but agree.  
  
Eliot gets a chair and put in the middle of the living room. Without a word, he points at it so Dexter could sit.  
  
The druid walks very slowly, not sure about the idea after all. It could all go so wrong.  
  
“You do know how to do that?” He asks unsure.  
  
“I do.” The other replies before Dexter sits.  
  
“Then be gentle, it’s my first time.”  
  
The other teenagers laugh while Eliot just rolls his eyes. Ms. Hale don’t move a muscle.  
  
The guy concentrate. Soon his claws appears. “This is gonna hurt.” He warns before drive them in the other’s neck.  
  
Dexter screams, the pain taking his entire mind for a second. The magic energy filled his body again. He could take Eliot down, he wants to take the werewolf down, but he knows he can’t. He has to concentrate, to fabricate the right memories for the other to see. He does the family he was supposed to have. The hunters going into the house, with the extra detail of Gerard Argent being in there. Stiles and he running for their lives, trying to survive.  
  
When Eliot takes the claws out of his neck, both boys are exhausted. Dexter is all sweat, dropping it on the floor. Eliot is trying to breathe again.  
  
“It’s true….” He manages to say between gasps. “Even Gerard was there.”  
  
Ms. Hale sighs. She seemed to be rooting for it to be a lie.  
  
“Okay, then. I’ll talk to the rest of the pack and then we will decide what to do with you two. For now, you can stay in the guest room. We were about to dine before the bell. Laura, set two more plates for them. Eliot, show the two of them the room. You can shower and then come to the dinner room.”  
  
She turns to the kitchen leaving the five teenagers looking at each other.  
  
“She is always so… intense?” Stiles asks, forgetting that she can hear him.  
  
Dexter hiss at him. “Really, Stiles?”  
  
Derek is the first one to get up and soon everybody go do what they should be doing. Stiles helped Dexter, whom was still a little dizzy, to get up and they follow Eliot to the room.  
  
The room has only one big bed in the middle of it, which Stiles already ran to and said it would be his. Not really a surprise there. They look around to see a covering in the walls. It was sound proved.  
  
“So, werewolves like their privacy, huh?” Dexter asks pointing at it.  
  
“Yes, we do.” Eliot replies. “Don’t take long, no one will be able to eat until you go to the dinner table.”  
  
“Yeah, okay. But I don’t have any… clothes.” Dexter reminds him.  
  
“I will ask Derek to bring some of his. It will probably fit.”  
  
“Okay, thanks… And thank you for not make me go crazy.” He gives the other a smile.  
  
“I wasn’t trying to” is the response before Eliot left the room.  
  
Dexter turns to Stiles, shaking his head. “Wow.”  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys xD  
> Really hope you are enjoying it, it's being so much fun to write it.  
> Any question, desire to spoiler or just a hi, you can find me on tumblr: http://lenonizi.tumblr.com/


	4. Can Derek talk?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys \o/ sorry about the delay, I was taking care of my grandmother in the weekend and classes are back at college, so it was a little overwhelming. But there it is, I hope you like it. There is a lot more interection between Stiles, Dexter and Derek in this one, I had fun writing it, hope you guys like reading it.  
> And thanks lilliansage for my first bookmark, you made me a very happy guy \o/

The dinner is very silent and, despite Stiles’ big mouth, he keeps the quiet atmosphere. Better not to push luck. Everyone is still evaluating the situation, especially the boys. Dexter can feel Derek’s eyes onto them like a hawk, which brought a lot of flashbacks in the boy’s mind. They have to earn Derek’s trust for the plan to work. But they can’t do much in one dinner.  
  
After dinner, they go fast to their room. Stiles is the first to throw himself at the bed. He is really tired.  
  
“These sound-proof walls are very welcome, huh?” Stiles jokes.  
  
“It will certainly make our lives easier. And we can use all the help we get. They are intense, huh?” Dexter sits in the bed, also looking exhausted.  
  
“Oh yeah. For a moment there I thought we were screwed. How did you trick him?” He then sits, crossing his legs. “He was inside your head.”  
  
“Deaton taught me. He said that is the first thing an emissary should learn. And no wolf can know about it, so shut up.” He warns Stiles.  
  
“Not that I would tell any of the wolves here. They are all very weird, even Derek.” Stiles observes.  
  
Dexter sighs. “Yeah, but we have to remember that’s not the Derek we know. He didn’t experience all the things that old Derek did. And in here, he has his mother, that seems to be a very strong presence in the life of everyone.”  
  
“I didn’t take Derek as a mommy’s boy.” Stiles smiles. “And his brother? The guy barely breathe without his mother’s approval.”  
  
“Oh, yeah, I saw that. He is cute, though.” Stiles stares at him and Dexter shrugs. “You know, in a very ‘I can break your neck’ kind of way. We just… need to make them trust us. Especially Derek.”  
  
“But we can do that tomorrow.” Stiles announces. “Right now, I really want to sleep.”  
  
When Stiles wakes up in the next day, Dexter is still pretty much dead in bed. He knows that using magic was very demanding of him and considering the amount of stuff the guy had to do the day before, he could really use a little more time there. And it also gives Stiles the opportunity to snoop around the house by himself.  
  
He leaves the room really quietly, trying not to wake anyone. He passes the rooms and get to the stairs. No sound, no movement. He go down the steps very slowly and, when he finally get to the living room, Derek is there with the arms crossed and a threatening face (probably the emblem of the family).  
  
“What are you doing?” He demands, almost giving Stiles a heart attack.  
  
“What? Nothing.” Stiles tries to sound innocent, but fails miserably. “I’m just… looking for coffee.”  
  
“Maybe you and caffeine are not such a good match.” Derek warns him, surprising Stiles with the response. Maybe he had to use more words having brothers and sisters around.  
  
“I do need breakfast, though.” He shrugs.  
  
“That’s what I’m doing in the kitchen. You will have to wait a little.”  
  
Derek points to the sofa. Stiles looks at him, shake his head and sit in the sofa. As soon as Derek turns to go to the kitchen, Stiles is up and following him.  
  
“Do you need help?”  
  
“No.”  
  
“So I will keep you company.”  
  
“I don’t need that either.”  
  
“That’s okay, I don’t really have anywhere else to go.” Stiles finds a chair and starts to observe Derek cooking. He is making pancakes, apparently. It’s such a domestic and normal thing to do, that it looks weird. Derek is not domestic or normal.  
  
“Where is your brother?” Derek asks without looking at Stiles.  
  
“Who?”  
  
“Your brother, the one you have been running with for months.” Now Derek looks at him, suspicious.  
  
“He is sleeping. Every time he uses magic, he gets really tired, so… He sleeps a lot more than me. Do you want me to wake him?”  
  
“No, one less person to annoy me.”  
  
They stay silent for a while, Stiles still observing quite amused at Derek cooking. He looked so much lighter, without the weight of the world that he carried when they first met. But he was still hurt, Stiles could see that.  
  
“You are staring at me.” Derek complains.  
  
“Sorry. Where is everyone?”  
  
“They are in a pack meeting, deciding what to do with you and your brother.”  
  
“I thought that was yesterday.” He is worried now.  
  
“That are a lot more people in the Hale pack. And even so my mother is the Alpha, everyone should have a say in this matter.” Derek explains.  
  
“You are here.” Stiles notices.  
  
“Someone had to take care of you two.” He puts the eggs in a plate, bacon in the corner of it and put in front of Stiles. “Eat.”  
  
The boy obeys without much fuzz while Derek put two more plates.  
  
“Maybe you should wake Dexter. It will get cold.”  
  
“Yeah.”  
  
Dexter complains a lot, but is soon awake and down with the big clothes he got from Eliot. He sits in the kitchen, get his eggs and eats like he was hungry for days.  
  
“Is the magic an excuse for that too?” Stiles asks.  
  
“Yes.” Dexter explains again. “It uses the energy of my body, Stiles, my connection with the nature around me. It means that I need to eat and sleep a little more if I use too much of it. And trying to not go crazy when someone is messing in your head is really hard.”  
  
“You didn’t have to do that.” Derek says, surprising the other two.  
  
Dexter looks at him for a while, trying to read his expression. “I needed you guys to believe in me. That seemed like the only way.”  He shrugs.  
  
“It was dangerous and unnecessary. Mother should know better than that.” He continues.  
  
“You should have said something them.” Stiles provokes.  
  
“If you guys are to survive living in this house, you should know how things works around here. My mother is a great Alpha. She really cares about everyone in the pack, not only her children. But she is also very sure of herself. She is always right. Eliot always supports her. So, when she says something, the best we can do is accept it and move on. Because she is not gonna change her mind.”  
  
“It sounds very… democratic.” Stiles smiles.  
  
“Then it’s probably gonna be a race to see who wants to kill us first, your mother or the hunters.”  
  
They laugh a little, felling very comfortable with each other. Derek is surprise by it. He was warned by his mother, by his brother, don’t trust them, don’t get attached to them. They are strangers; they don’t know anything about them. But despite all that, he felt… connected? Like it was natural to talk to the two boys.  
  
“With time, you will see the battles worth fighting for. If the pack decides to keep you.” Derek reminds them.  
  
Dexter sighs. “Yeah, about that. Let’s be optimistic here and consider they decide to help. What then? We stay here? We go live with another person of the pack? Do you guys have an emissary, because I can learn and help fight the hunters and…”  
  
“I don’t know.” Derek interrupts him. “You are probably gonna be here, is the safest place right now. And if we have an emissary, I don’t know about him or her. That is not really so unusual. Anyway, this usually takes a long time and mother wants me to take you two clothes shopping.”  
  
Stiles couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “Really? You don’t look like the clothes shopping kind of guy.”  
  
“Happy that you noticed. So we can go, you can get another plaid shirt and we are done with it.” Derek says getting his things.  
  
“Your mother should be really sure we are staying if we are buying clothes. And I don’t really like plaid shirts.” Dexter intervenes.  
  
“Then you will have no clothes.” Derek threatens them. Dexter just didn’t know how accurate he was.  
  
When they got to the shopping center, Derek goes straight to the first store he sees. He gives Stiles and Dexter some money and say: “You have thirty minutes. If you are not in front of the store by them, I will leave you guys here and the hunters will find and kill you. Do you understand?”  
  
Stiles and Dexter look at each other and agree, without much choice left.  
  
“What are you waiting for?” is what Derek says before the two teenagers start to run through the shelves.  
  
It’s like a reality show competition, with clothes being throw at the other side of the store. A lot of that clothes are plain shirts.  
  
“He is such an ass!” Dexter complains grabbing the first jeans that is possible to fit him.  
  
“I’m sure Laura would not be that bad to us.” Stiles says passing by him.  
  
“Wouldn’t she? I’m not that excited about the Hales right now.”  
  
The saleswoman wasn’t happy with the little game either, especially when Dexter almost hit one of the clients and Stiles throw an entire shelve to the ground. But when she was about to call security, the time was up. They paid for the clothes and left under a lot of angry eyes.  
  
“There, we are…” Dexter starts to talk, but stops when he realizes Derek is not there.  
  
“Did he really made such a fuss to now be vanished? Or did we lost track of…”  
  
“No, we are on time. He is the one that left us. But he should not have gone too far, the hunters are around, after all.” Dexter says, covering his bases in case the wolf is hearing them.  
  
“Oh, yeah, we are completely helpless and he left us here.” Stiles tries to do the same.  
  
Dexter smiles at him. “Do it with a little less irony next time.” He then look around. “We should look for him, right? Better than stay here. He is probably eating something or looking for the leather jacket he is gonna wear for the rest of his life.”  
  
Stiles shrugs, but follows the friend. They look through a few stores that may interest the wolf, but he is nowhere to be found. They even go to the food court thinking maybe breakfast wasn’t enough for the guy, but he wasn’t there either.  
  
“Maybe we should grab a milkshake, since we are here.” Dexter suggests.  
  
“Dude, are you really still hungry? Is there a black hole in your stomach?”  
  
Dexter rolls his eyes. “I’m not going to explain to you how magic works again.”  
  
Stiles just grabs Dexter’s arms, pulling him away from the food. “We should just look for Derek and…”  
  
He stops talking when he finds the werewolf. There is Derek, in a dark corner of a hallway with a girl trying to eat his face. They were actually kissing, but that is what it looked like to Stiles. It was like she was attacking him, her hands going to all the unappropriated places, especially in public.  
  
“We should do something.” Stiles says.  
  
“What? Throw water at them? They are teenagers, that’s what they do.”  
  
“We are teenagers, we don’t do that!”  
  
“Then we are doing it wrong, we should do that.” Stiles looks at him with a very surprised face. “Not with each other, Stiles, for god’s sake.”  
  
“That makes more sense…” He nods. “But wait a minute, if Derek is not the biggest player in this town…”  
  
“What I think is hard considering how he can barely speak…” Dexter continues, turning to look at Stiles now.  
  
“That girl is Kate Argent.”  
  



	5. The No TV Rule

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was bored and even so I know I could just stored this chapter and waited a little more to post it, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Hope you guys like it, anyway.  
> Special thanks for YellowPhoenix26 \o/ I don't get much appreciation, so when I do, it makes me very happy xD

The boys take a while to react. But as soon as the idea sink in their minds, they hide behind a water fountain. The other teenagers were still making out like that was nobody around, which made Stiles very uncomfortable.  
  
“Really? He could at least hide a little bit!” Stiles complains.  
  
Dexter shake his head. “He knows his family is in the pack meeting, there is no risk for him.”  
  
Stiles frowns. “It’s not just that, is… Her. She is a monster.”  
  
“We know that. He doesn’t.”  
  
“Then why don’t we just go there and tell him the truth? She is a lying bitch that wants to murder his family!”  
  
“Calm down.” Dexter says pulling Stiles away from there. “He would not believe us, you know that.”  
  
“Look, you haven’t met her. She is terrible. She looks nice and independent, also super hot. And you think she is a nice person, maybe a little rough around the edges, but cool. In the next minute, she captures Derek, tortures him and makes him remind how his family was dead because of him. That is the girl trying to eat Derek’s face, Dex. And we need to do something.”  
  
“That is exactly what we are here to do.” Dexter says. “But you need to calm down because right now, he is still under her spell. He probably thinks she is the most amazing girl in the world, that even so she is a hunter, she is so crazy in love with him that she does not care. And anyone that says otherwise will be wrong for him. Especially peoples he barely know. That is why we are in the Hale’s house, we need to get his trust first. But if we don’t control ourselves, she will win and all will be for nothing. Do you get that?”  
  
Stiles shakes his head again. He takes a deep breath and try to put a fake smile. “Do not underestimate her, she is dangerous.”  
  
Dexter put his hands in Stiles shoulders. “Yeah, but so are we.”  
  
x.x.x  
  
About ten minutes after that, Derek finally shows up in the store, his hair all messed up and his clothes wrinkled. Dexter notices the blush in his face and the happy smile that was so unnatural for him. It makes him sad that Kate was only using him. He deserved to find someone that would make him smile like that.  
  
“So you abandoned us? That is not cool.” Dexter complains.  
  
“I was giving you guys more time. You didn’t like the 30 minutes challenge.”  
  
“You should had let us know that.” Stiles continues. “We could use the extra time to see if the clothes actually fit us.”  
  
“You can come back and exchange if you have to.” Derek shrugs, clearly no caring that much. “We should go, mother is back.”  
  
Dexter looks at Stiles before ask. “They decided? What did she said?”  
  
“That you guys are staying.” He gives an evil smile before add. “But with some rules…”  
  
Stiles throws his body in the couch. Derek said some rules, but it was more like an all constitution. According to Ms. Hale, they would have to study in the same school as Derek, Laura and Eliot. They would go and come back with them, not being allowed to be alone at any time outside the house. Dexter was not to use magic without permission and they, obviously, couldn’t say a word about the supernatural stuff to anyone in school.  
  
They would also have to follow all the house rules the other kids had to and it was a lot, including housework and training sessions in the woods. Stiles was not so excited about that part. What kind of training would he receive being a human and having no physical strength? Dexter could use the bow and learned a lot of crazy stuff in his travels with his adopted father, but all Stiles had was his brains and, somehow, he knew it would not be enough in that place.  
  
Dexter wasn’t so happy with the rules either. He was too used to do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. It was too much control over him, he didn’t like it. But it was necessary. He knew that. So he did his best to convince himself that it was worth it. That he could do it.  
  
The day passes in a heartbeat. They tried out the clothes and for their surprise most of it was good. There was a lot of plaid shirts and Derek made a joke or two about it, but it was good enough. Laura did help separating some of it for them to go back and exchange the next day.  
  
Dexter tried to watch some TV (he was very curious about what shows were on), but apparently there was no TV after dinner rule. Considering there was no TV before dinner too, he wondered if the device was there just for decoration.  
  
He settle reading a book he got in the office shelve. Something about the effects of the moon in different animals that made him want to strangle someone in about fifteen minutes.  
  
“Have your mother ever explain to you why the TV rule?” He finally asks Laura when he is too bored to pretend he cares about the book.  
  
“No.” She answers with a smile. “You can ask her. I will love to hear what she has to say.”  
  
Dexter looks at the woman, who is reading in her office.  
  
“It’s a trap.” Eliot warns him. “She will give you a one hour lecture about why this generation is getting obsessed about visual stimulation and how it just takes the focuses of the important stuff, like the preservation of the pack.”  
  
“Damn it, El!” Laura complains. “I almost got him.”  
  
Dexter turns to her with an accusatory look. “You are evil!”  
  
She only laughs at him, getting back to her homework.  
  
“So, what do you guys normally do? ‘Cause I’m about to cut my arm off, that’s how bored I’m. And Stiles is just quiet because he is sleeping, which is no good since he will be awake all night long.”  
  
“We have games…” Eliot says. “Board games.”  
  
Laura shrugs, not giving it much thought.  
  
“Good Lord, that’s the kind of childhood you guys have? Pack meetings and board games? Your life sucks.”  
  
Eliot fold his arms. “You spent the last year running for your life with no money and a hyperactive brother, I think your life is worse.”  
  
“I still could watch TV. I mean, we are in the middle of the good years of Grey’s Anatomy and we can’t watch it!”  
  
“I don’t know what you are talking about.” The werewolf is confused.  
  
“It’s a TV show, stupid.” Laura rolls her eyes. “Okay, you are the one boring me now. What do you want to do? And TV is not an option.”  
  
“Do you at least have a deck of cards?”  
  
x.x.x  
  
They were already playing for three hours. Dexter won must of the times, getting all the money from Eliot and Derek.  
  
“If I discover you are reading my mind, I’ll kill you.” The older one threatens him, but he don’t really care.  
  
Laura is a good opponent, though. She is good hiding her game and even better discovering other people’s games. In more than one occasion, Dexter had to lend him some money for Stiles to stay in the game.  
  
“This time I will beat you all.” Was the kind of stuff Stiles insisted in saying during the game. That was exactly the time he was bluffing and everybody knew that.  
  
“You really suck at this!” Derek mocked him more than once too.  
  
Stiles smiles at Dexter. It was fun seeing the brothers and sister like this, playing around, having fun. It make him sure that he was right, that they were there to save them.  
  
The games had to stop when it was time for them to go to bed (that was one of the rules). Everyone went to their respective rooms and Stiles was sleeping in the bed this time, Dexter arranging some blankets and a pillow to sleep in the floor.  
  
Dexter sighs when he finally lays down. “It sucks that we have to lie to them. They are nice people when you get to know them.”  
  
“But that is why we are doing it, Dex, because they are nice people. Even though their rules sucks!”  
  
Stiles starts to laugh and Dexter goes with him. “Really, really bad. This no TV thing is a deal breaker, I want to go home…”  
  
They stop laughing, a weird and worried silence taking the room.  
  
“How do you think they are?” Stiles asks. “In the future? Our future?”  
  
“I have no idea. Maybe they didn’t even notice we were gone or… Maybe what we are changing here will prevent things to happen how it was… That’s too complicated, I have no idea…”  
  
“I miss my father. And Scott. Lydia. Even Alison and Issac.”  
  
“Right? I miss the fact that we could talk to them. Like, really talk to them about whatever. Here we are just… too restricted. We should sleep, though. Ms. Hale wants to take us to school tomorrow.”  
  
“I don’t know how she will pull that off. She will need a lot of fake documents to enroll us in the school.”  
  
“She knows a lot of people in this town. And she is the Alpha. The good thing is that we will get to spend more time with Derek and the others, getting their trust. Better than staying at the house, not able to watch TV.”  
  
“You really miss your TV, huh?”  
  
“You have no idea…”  
  
x.x.x  
  
The next morning, Stiles is up and running in seconds. He is ready for school like a nerd in science fair day. Dexter, in the other hand, is dragging himself to the car trying really hard to come up with something that would make Ms. Hale allow him to get back to bed.  
  
“He is not really a morning person, is he?” Derek asks.  
  
“Oh, no.”  
  
They get to school faster than Stiles expects and he is surprise at how easy Ms. Hale get to put then in classes. She has all the papers, all the stories prepared for it. And the missing points are prudently ignored by the school administration. She is careful enough to put them in classes with her kids, considering that was a few teenagers hunters in the school (Kate Argent included).  
  
Dexter is also surprised at how much teachers are the same as they had. He knew it was only a six years difference, but the Coach wasn’t supposed to be another person? Or did he just really wished it was?  
  
He gets to his first class and just throw his face in the chair, not willing at all to participate. He is still sleepy (sleeping in the floor is not as comfortable as he thought) and not that excited about the trigonometry class. Then he fells a hand in his forehead, pushing it up until he was sitting straight.  
  
“Dude, let me sleep.” He pleads to Eliot, who is sitting right next to him.  
  
“You can’t. You have to pay attention.”  
  
“Why?! It’s not like I will go to college or something. I’m a freaking…” He stops when sees Eliot’s angry face. “You know what. So this is useless and I want to sleep. I’m already without watching TV, so I’m in a bad mood.”  
  
“I can see that. You still have to pay attention because Mr. Banks loves to find a sleeping student and make him embarrassed. Since you are new, it would not be the most pleasant first day, would it?”  
  
Dexter sighs. “No, it wouldn’t.”  
  
“Tomorrow, we will get you some more blankets for you to sleep on. You are very annoying when you are tired.”  
  
Dexter put a fake smile in his face. “I’m very annoying all the time, you just notice more when I’m tired.”  
  
In the classroom two hallways away, Stiles is beating his feet in the floor, giving Derek a headache.  
  
“Really, are you gonna do this all day?”  
  
“Probably.” He confess. “I’m nervous. I shouldn’t be nervous. Why am I nervous?”  
  
“I don’t know, because you are crazy?”  
  
“I’m not crazy, just… anxious. And crazy.”  
  
Now he is beating his fingers in the chair too and other kids are looking at him.  
  
“Maybe it was not such a good idea to put you and your brother in separate classes.” Derek says. “Do you want me to…”  
  
“No.” He answers fast. He tries to stop with the fingers first. Then with the feet. He takes a deep breath and looks at Derek.  
  
“I’m better now. It’s just… This classroom… reminds me of… things…”  
  
“You have never come here, how does it…” Some realization come across Derek’s face. “Your old school?”  
  
“Yes. I think I just miss home. I was talking about it last night with Dex and just…”  
  
Stiles looks at the bottom of the class. He remembers that classroom very well. That was the same class Jennifer assaulted Lydia. The same class she took his father. He was okay now; he knew that. But sitting in that classroom somehow brought it all back to him.  
  
“It’s okay. I know it sucks not to be home, but… At least you are safe. And maybe you can just build a new home here. Make new friends. And if you need anything… you can go look for your brother.”  
  
Stiles turns to him, a small smile in his face. “You are very helpful.”  
  
“I’m not here to help you, I’m here to keep you safe.” He answers, but he has a smile in his face too.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, you can find me on [tumblr](http://lenonizi.tumblr.com/) or in the comments for spoilers, sugestions, ideas, or even a "hey".


	6. Heating Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sunday I was sleeping and that is actually when most of my plots and ideas come to mind, so i woke up really early and started to type every idea i had for this fic. It got to about 15 chapters worth of planning, so is more about the heavy lifting now. I hope you guys are liking where i'm going with this and any opinion, complain, idea is very welcome \o/

The hours pass smoother than expected to both of them and a big part of this is the support from the Hales. As Ms. Hale told them, they would not have classes without at least one member of the pack, so there was always someone they knew and the first day wasn’t as awkward as it usually is. There was the fact that both studied there before too, but only they knew about that.  
  
Dexter ends up taking a class in the same room Lydia was attack too and, as with Stiles, he takes a moment to breathe in and remember it was all in the past. Or the future. He was still confused about that too.  
  
“Are you okay?” Laura asks realizing his reaction. She looks around when other peoples also notice. “Because we can go to infirmary, I would love a reason to skip class.”  
  
“It’s okay.” He lies because he can’t really explain. He is getting tired of the lies, though.  
  
Lunchtime arrives and the Hales quickly get together to go outside. The hallways are filled with students talking, laughing (some even crying), but what gets Stiles attention is the ones that stop in front of them. It’s a couple of big guys, with a scary face and arms bigger than he was. He looks at Derek, curious, but the wolf is busy in a stare contest with the others.  
  
Dexter gaze at Stiles and them at the Hales. “So, not friends, huh?”  
  
“We are not friends.” One of the guys stares Dexter now, evaluating the level of threat the boy meant. He probably didn’t get a big score, because there was a small smirk in his face. “And you choose the wrong friends. Very bad company.”  
  
“Is because we prefer brains than muscle, you know.” Stiles get the guy attention. He does the same, looks at Stiles from top to bottom and sees no sign of threat.  
  
“If they do indeed care about brains, you probably wouldn’t be around them too.”  
  
“Shut up, Argent.” Laura interrupts finally.  
  
“Do you want a problem with me, Hale?” The guy give a step forward and Stiles can see how the situation can easily become worse than already is.  
  
“Stop!” They listen a female voice from behind the guys. A girl with dark hair and a defiance face appears between them. “We all know that here is not the place for this.” She has a fake smile in her face, the kind of smile that makes Dexter wants to wipe it out of her. “My cousins here are just excited about new people on school. They wanna meet you, that’s all. My name is Kate Argent.” She turns to the cousins. “This is Carl and Jason. They are not the sharpest pencils on the box, but they are very good listening to girls. What is your name?”  
  
Dexter looks at Derek, not sure from were the fake kindness comes from. He don’t really get an answer. “I’m Dexter White and this is Stiles White. We are… family friends from the Hales.”  
  
“Good to know.” She smiles again. “Hope you have a nice stay.” She starts to walk away, followed by the two bodyguards, but before she goes too far, she turns around. “If any of them bothers you again… You should run.”  
  
Dexter looks at Stiles with his mouth open and his mind at a thousand an hour. Then he goes through Eliot, Derek and Laura. “What the hell was that?”  
  
“That was the Argents and the Bitch Queen, Kate.” Laura almost spits the works, so much disgust in her voice. “I swear to God, if Mother didn’t order us to stay away, I would have ripped this girl’s face until…”  
  
“We get the picture.” Stiles stops her. “You guys deal with this everyday here?”  
  
“Pretty much.” Eliot nods. “We can’t do much about it to contain exposure, but they also can’t do nothing to us here. So is a lot like Cold War in Beacon Hills High.”  
  
“But with teenagers.” Dexter completes. “This is way worse than we expected…”  
  
Dexter just didn’t know how right he was. And the next few days proven to be a challenge for all the pack. The attacks and traps from the hunters were getting more and more intense and frequent. They were trained and patient, both traits not that common in werewolves. After all, that was not a pack used to fight. Yes, they had a strong Alpha, but they were just so used to have a home, for a while they almost forgot what they were. And that cost them.  
  
The routine in the Hale’s House was getting easier to learn each day. Ms. Hale didn’t involve Dexter and Stiles in the pack dynamics, so what they did most of the time was homework and fight training. Of course, Stiles was terrible at it. He didn’t have much discipline, patient or will to become what they wanted him to be.  
  
“I’m a thinker, not a fighter.” He kept saying, but anybody listened to him.  
  
Dexter, in the other hand, was getting better and better. He didn’t have the strength of the werewolves, but the magic helped him whenever he needed it, so he could keep up. After a few weeks, he did actually manage to throw a ball direct to Derek’s face! He was so happy, he bake a cake when they got back home.  
  
They were also surprised by how well they adjusted with the family. Ms. Hale still looked a little tough, but somehow less scary with time. And the relationship with the kids were just fascinating. Eliot, who was leading the fight training, had always that boss face on him. Laura was always mocking him about it, saying he was training for when he did became an Alpha, which she thought would be useless, since their mother would never leave the post. She would outlive everybody in the pack; Laura was sure about it.  
  
Derek was a lot more withdraw compared to the others. He was warming up to Dexter and Stiles, thought. Especially Stiles, who had a gift to annoy a person until the person starts to like him. Since most of the training Stiles would do was with Derek (‘cause Laura and Eliot were busy beating the crap out of Dexter), he did have time to annoy him. And he did.  
  
“So, what did you do last night?” Stiles liked to ask whenever Derek disappeared out of nowhere. He knew he was sneaking around with Kate, but he would still mess with his head.  
  
“I was… taking care of my life, you should do the same.” That was one of Derek’s favorite responses.  
  
Laura was a lot more thoughtful, though. That scared Dexter from time to time, because if someone were to find out the truth, it would be her. He didn’t missed the furtive looks and recurrent question she gave them when she thought they were off guard. She was checking their story, making sure her Mother was right about trusting them.  
  
Trust. That was a word that the Hales didn’t know that much.  
  
That Sunday, about six weeks after Dexter and Stiles arrived in the house, the mood is not the best. There was another attack and a werewolf was fatally wounded, another two were in bad shape, but trying to recuperate. Ms. Hale spent all day somewhere Stiles had no idea where, making sure they would be okay. When they asked for an update, she didn’t answer. She just got to her office and closed the door.  
  
“I wish I could help.” Stiles says sitting in the sofa.  
  
“I could if she let me learn magic.” Dexter insists in the fight he was having for the last three weeks.  
  
“She says no, she says is dangerous, you should listen to her.” Eliot warns him, sitting next to Stiles. “They are being threated; the pack knows what to do.”  
  
“The pack, the pack, the pack, always the pack…” Laura complains. “The pack is dying, El. One by one. And we are here, doing nothing.”  
  
“What can we do, Laura?!” Derek interjects. “Do you think that if we go after them, it would make a difference? It would just make it easier for them to kill us.”  
  
“And I have to look to that bitch’s face everyday, knowing what she is doing.”  
  
Dexter could feel the anger a mile away.  
  
“Her family is doing.” Derek corrects her, making Stiles roll his eyes. Can you be more obvious? He thinks annoyed.  
  
“Complain don’t really solve anything.”  
  
“Stiles is right.” Eliot stands up.  
  
“So we just wait to die?”  
  
“No one is dying, Laura.” Ms. Hale says appearing out of nowhere in the living room. All the teenagers sit, looking like children after making a mess. “We went complacent, we had a good life and thought that all the evil was gone, that we were safe. And for a while we were. The pack your father built… Is our job to keep it safe. I am the Alpha and you are my children…” She looks at Stiles and Dexter. “Well, most of you. But you two are included in this too. We are not complacent anymore. We will fight. We will conquer our home back, but we will need everyone. I will come back to the warehouse, I will see how Berkley is. I will contact every member of this pack, every neighbor pack we ever helped before and we will go after the Argents. So we are not dying, Laura. Trust me when I say that.”  
  
She leaves with a new determination that inspire the others.  
  
“I told you guys, we will be okay.” Eliot has a proud smile in his face. “And we will fight.”  
  
Stiles looks at Dexter and sighs. “That’s what I was afraid of…”  
  
They don’t stay in the living room for long before Stiles starts to make very weird movements with his head. Dexter frowns at him, confused, but realizes that he wants the other to go upstairs.  
  
“You could just say it.” He whispers when they get in the room they were still sharing.  
  
“I didn’t want to express my concern in front of the others. And I’m concerned.”  
  
“What? The fight? It will be okay, Stiles. Despite Ms. Hale saying I can’t, I got some magic books, some sites on school. I am getting better, I can actually be helpful.”  
  
“Yeah? Congratulations for you, do you want a golden star?” He rolls his eyes.  
  
“Just because you suck doesn’t mean you have to be a dick.”  
  
“I’m not being a dick, I’m trying to be serious. Because we have to do something about the Kate situation.”  
  
Dexter sighs. “I know. It’s getting out of control. He left yesterday before dinner and I had to lie to Ms. Hale. You know how hard it is to control your heartbeat when she is staring at you. I had to literally curse my heart. But worse than she finding out, something can happen to him. If they don’t know what he is doing, he can end up just like Berkley.”  
  
“We need to say something. I don’t know, tell him we saw them in the mall that day and that we kept his secret, but we are worried about him now. I think he trusts us enough to actually listen.”  
  
Dexter shakes his head. “Maybe you, he doesn’t talk to me that much.”  
  
“That is because you are always with Eliot.” Stiles says with a little smile in his face.  
  
“What is… what is this?” Dexter points at Stiles, whom pretends to not understand what he is saying. “You can wipe it off and stop fishing. Eliot is like my training officer that never leaves me alone. He threw a knife at my face at dinner, for God’s sake.”  
  
“Yeah, that was a little overboard. But considering the situation we are in…” Stiles sits in the bed, scratch his head, trying to organize his thoughts. “You think talking with Laura would help?”  
  
Dexter shakes his head. “She would kill Derek and the all point of us being here would be gone… But if Ms. Hale is that ready to fight, it must means that the time is close. And if we don’t do something to make Derek realize the stupidity he is doing, they are all doomed.”  
  
Stiles stands up, walking to the window. “Maybe even us…” He stops talking. “I’m gonna kill him, Dex.” He points outside. “Derek is leaving again. He is going to…”  
  
“The woods.” Dexter says already at the window with Stiles. “Is he out of his mind? That place is infested with hunters, everybody knows that.”  
  
“We need to talk to the others. Maybe that is our chance to make him see the light.”  
  
“This can go terrible wrong and, even if nobody get hurt, he may never forgive us.” Dexter says.  
  
“At least he will be alive. That’s what matter."  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, you can find me here on [tumblr](http://lenonizi.tumblr.com) too.  
> See you soon \o/


	7. Saving Derek's Butt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, i'm really sorry about the delay on this one. College and work is kiling me, so is my ncis marathon. But I promise the next one will not take that long to be up. Also, hope you guys like the end of this one ;)

When Stiles and Dexter told the others about Derek sneaking out, they started to balance the chances of the werewolf getting out of that alive. Maybe being killed by the hunters wasn't such a bad idea, because Laura had blood in her eyes and Eliot didn’t seem to breathe for a while now.  
  
“I’m gonna kill him. I will kill and then cut him in little, tiny pieces, give him to the dogs or pigs or… What else eats human flesh?” Laura asks while the four teenagers walk in the dark, chill and full of crap woods.  
  
“A lot of stuff.” Dexter answers kind of scared too. “But if we are just gonna kill him after, we should go home.”  
  
“Oh, no. Because if he is killed now, it will be fast.” Eliot says. “I want him to suffer.”  
  
Stiles and Dexter stares at each other. They need to clear up the air a little bit.  
  
“He may be in like a secret mission for your mother.” Stiles tries to help.  
  
“I would know.”  
  
“You do know what secret means, right, Eliot?” Dexter stops and the others do the same. “Look, we don’t know what he is doing out here and maybe he needs our help, maybe he doesn’t. But I don’t think being pissed and talk shit to him when we find him will make things better.” He sighs. “Now, we all agree it’s not a good idea to tell your Mother that he was gone. Maybe listen to him before committee murder is a good idea too. Do you guys agree?”  
  
Stiles nods frenetically, but the other two have no reaction. “Guys, come on! Everybody screws up from time to time. I should know!”  
  
Laura sighs. “Okay, we will not kill him. Not immediately, anyway.”  
  
“We want to hear him pleading for his life too.” Eliot completes, provoking eyes rolling in Stiles and Dexter face.  
  
“You guys are ridic…”  
  
Dexter stops in the middle of the sentence, a noise heard in a distance. Laura and Eliot look at each other, ready for an attack. The older one points to the side with his head. Stiles and Derek are quick to obey.  
  
They stay in a tense position for a while, until they see an animal running fast close to them. It was about that time that Stiles started to breathe again.  
  
“Maybe we overreact a little.”  
  
“We reacted right.” Eliot says, grabbing his sister’s hand and pulling her. “We need to find him. Fast.”  
  
“We have no idea where he is going. And he is alone.” Laura reminds them. “Going that slow, we will never find him.”  
  
Stiles turns to her, offended. “So it’s my fault now?”  
  
“No, it’s your and Dexter’s fault.” Eliot complains.  
  
“You should not say that after I kicked your ass in training yesterday.” Dexter shrugs in response. “Anyway, I have an idea to make this search quicker.”  
  
He looks around, finding a good place for him to sit down. He then empty his pocket, putting some herbs in the ground. He looks at Stiles and the boy give him a sock.  
  
Laura makes a frown. “Is this Derek’s?”  
  
“No, is from the big-foot. That’s the one we are looking for, right?”  
  
Dexter has a small smile. “If it is, I’m doing this wrong.”  
  
He put the herbs inside the sock, smashing it to the ground.  
  
“This is so weird.” Eliot says, approaching him.  
  
Dexter looks up, way more excited that he should. “I’m glad you like it, because you have to smell it.”  
  
“I’m not gonna…”  
  
“Yes, you will.” Stiles completes. “This is supposed to make the smell more… vivid. So you can track him more easily.”  
  
“And why don’t Laura smell it? It’s Derek’s sock! And I think it’s dirty.” He complains.  
  
Dexter is trying really hard not to laugh. “If it was clean, it would not smell.”  
  
“That is a good thing.” Laura complains too.  
  
They observe Dexter’s work, spreading the green thing through the sock, saying words no one of them identified and them the strange glare that appears in it. It was there for only a second, but it was enough for them to believe that it would work.  
  
Dexter stands up, a proud smile in his face. “It’s all yours.”  
  
Eliot and Laura look at each other, hating Derek even more in that instant. Just another reason to kill him, they thought. They inhale, the strong scent taking over their nose and, suddenly, their brains. In a heartbeat, all they could think about was that scent, going after it, finding it. They start to run, in a speed Stiles and Derek could never keep up.  
  
Stiles look at them and then turns to Dexter. “We didn’t think about that, huh?”  
  
“We should start running.”  
  
They really put an effort not to stay so far from the werewolves running like their lives depends on it, but it’s not possible for them. Dexter does a little better and Stiles thinks it’s maybe some of the druid blood going through him. But Stiles? He is almost dying after 10 minutes of that.  
  
At some point, which for Stiles seems like eternity, they stop. When Dexter and Stiles finally got to them, Derek was very confused, laying in the ground with the other two smelling him.  
  
“What the hell is that?” He yells when he sees the two of them.  
  
“Okay, that is enough, guys.” Dexter says and the werewolves have no reaction.  
  
“You have to burn the sock, remember?”  
  
“Where is the lighter?”  
  
“What?”  
  
“The lighter.” He turns to the supposed brother. “You forgot it.”  
  
“No, you were supposed to bring it.” Stiles defends himself. “You forgot.”  
  
“Guys!” Derek yells again, the brother and sister getting weirder every second. “Figure it out!”  
  
Stiles has enough. “You do realize you are in no position to say anything, right? Considering you run off with hunters all over this place!”  
  
“I don’t care!”  
  
“Okay, relax, you too.” Dexter shakes his head, looking at the sock. “I never tried this.”  
  
He puts the sock in the ground, crouch down and stares at the clothe item, concentrated. Stiles watch fascinated while it starts to go in flames, quickly becoming nothing more than ashes in the floor. As soon as the flames died, Eliot and Laura jump from Derek, feeling as uncomfortable as the brother was.  
  
“Don’t ever do that again.” Eliot warns them.  
  
Stiles don’t really care. “Your powers are getting so much cooler, dude! The fire thing was awesome.”  
  
“Can you do that with people?” Laura asks and then everybody turns to her.  
  
“What kind of question is that? No!”  
  
“I was just wondering…” She shrugs, standing up. “Because I can think of someone who deserves it.”  
  
She looks straight to Derek, with ice cold eyes that would make anyone shiver.  
  
“I just left the house.”  
  
Eliot shakes his head, frustration all over his face. “Which is stupid! There are werewolves dying, Mother is getting ready for a war and would kill you if she knew that…”  
  
“She doesn’t know?” Derek stops Eliot. “Good. Now you guys can go back, I know what I’m doing.”  
  
Stiles takes a step ahead. “Yes, we are going back. With you.”  
  
“No, you are not. I have things to… work out.” Derek tries to be the more evasive possible, but the others are not having it.  
  
“Stop, Derek, don’t you think you got us in enough trouble? We can be attacked at any…”  
  
Before Laura finish, she feels a body thrown on her, Eliot’s body. When she looks up, there is an arrow in a tree next to the place her head was.  
  
“Damn it!” Stiles says trying to get out of the line of fire. It was too late. Arrows started to rain over them, coming from everywhere. The werewolves quickly transformed, dodging the attack and trying to find the attackers.  
  
Dexter pulls Stiles to the side, using his training (and a little of his powers) to avoid the arrows.  
  
“They need to get out or they will not…”  
  
“I know! What can we do?”  
  
Stiles turns to Dexter, with one of those smiles of someone who just had a terrible idea. “We find one of them.”  
  
This time Stiles is the one pulling Dexter. They try to be silent enough to surprise one of the attackers, Dexter punching the guy in the face and taking his weapon.  
  
He makes sure Stiles knows where to hide and run to the middle of the crossfire, shooting back at the hunters. They could hear some screams when he get to the target and soon they gave up on the weapons, going to a more physical fight.  
  
The first one jumps in Laura, with one of the electrical staff the hunters liked to use. Laura screams with the electricity going through her body, but Eliot appears to take down the hunter. Five more attack them and the fight becomes more intense.  
  
Derek tries to protect the others, but two hunters surround him. Every time he tries to move, to attack them, they use the electricity. They laugh, having fun with it.  
  
Stiles sneaks close to the fight, he can’t restrain himself. He can see that Derek is trapped, but the others are too busy trying to survive themselves. Dexter and Eliot apparently fight very well together, the training working in their favors. But the hunters are very well trained too.  
  
Stiles looks down and sees one of the bows the hunters were using. He grabs it and points to the hunter. He shoots and fail miserable; he was really horrible at this; but that is enough to distract the hunter and Derek get at least one blow to get back in the fight.  
  
Laura finally gets one of the hunters down and go help Eliot and Dexter. Brother and sister jump in one of them together while Dexter throws the other against a tree with his powers. When they look at the other side, the other two hunters are on the ground too. So is Derek and an unconscious Stiles.  
  
“What happened?” Dexter says running to where the other two were.  
  
“He is fine, one of the hunters punched him, that’s all.”  
  
“That’s all?” Dexter looks at Derek, disbelieve in his eyes. “We are not werewolves, Derek. We don’t heal like you guys do! He is unconscious!”  
  
Laura puts her hand in Dexter’s shoulders. “We shouldn’t be here screaming at each other. More can come. You can scream at him at home.”  
  
“Oh, I will.”  
  
“Nobody asked for you guys to be here!” Derek responds, tired of the accusations. “I was fine.”  
  
“You were not fine!” Eliot speaks out. “If it weren’t for those two, you could be dead right now. So you should be more thankful and not such an asshole.” He grabs Stiles. “Let’s go.”  
  
The way to the house was very silent. Dexter still wanted Derek’s head. He knew Stiles was fine, it was not the first time the poor guy got hurt in fights he had nothing to do with, but the ‘that’s nothing’ attitude made him so angry. He could feel the magical energy running through his body, but he control himself. It was harder than before, which scared him. Not as much as Talia Hale’s face when they got in the house.  
  
Of course, the woman was home before they thought she would be. She was at the door as soon as they get in. Stiles was already wake, but based on her face, he would not be for long.  
  
The five teenagers stay still while she looks for the right words, clearly controlling herself not to rip their throat out. With her teeth.  
  
Derek steps up. “We are okay, Mother. It was my fault and…”  
  
She says very slowly, which only makes it worse. “I don’t care. I was all day by the side of a werewolf, of his family, a werewolf that died protecting other people. He was trying to save other peoples of his pack and ended up being killed by hunters. Right now, dead, he is more valuable for this pack than the five of you are. We are in a war; we are dying and what? You decide to go for a walk?”  
  
“Mother…” Eliot tries to speak.  
  
“Shut up!” She yelled, making everybody’ body stiff. She then takes a deep breathe. “You are grounded. I don’t know how, because honestly, if you ever leave the house again without permission, you will not be back. But right now, I don’t want to look at any of you.”   
  
They stay still before she says. “Go!”  
  
There was never five teenagers faster than they were, going to their rooms without even blink.  
  
As soon as they get inside, Stiles starts to talk. “I’m okay, I swear, you don’t have to…”  
  
“Are you sure?” Dexter responds, still worried. “You scared me, dude.”  
  
He rolls his eyes. “You get scared too easily.”  
  
Derek sits in the bed. “Well, I don’t think I could do it by myself, that’s the truth. So, the next time I say stay there, you better obey.”  
  
“Never gonna happen, dude.” Stiles smiles. “You know that.”  
  
“You could at least lie, you know? Make me feel better.” Dexter smiles too, shaking his head. “I should go talk to Derek.”  
  
“Don’t you think we should get him some space? I mean, he was almost killed.”  
  
“We all were. And I don’t want to give him time enough for Kate to come up with an excuse. And I yelled at him too, so…”  
  
“Okay, go. And try to sneak downstairs to get something for us, I’m hungry.”  
  
Dexter rolls his eyes before he opens the door. “I’m not your maid.”  
  
He walks to Derek’s room carefully, not willing to hear more of Ms. Hale’s disappointment. He knocks and the werewolf opens the door.  
  
“Can I get in or…”  
  
“I’m not really in the mood for another lecture, Dex, so maybe you should…”  
  
“I’ll not, I promise. Even though you deserve.”  
  
Derek shakes his head. “Okay.”  
  
He goes out of the way so Dexter can come in. The druid sits in a chair while Derek sits in the bed.  
  
“If you are here to apologize, you shouldn’t…”  
  
“I’m not, I was right. I may have overreact a little, but… we did risk our lives for you. And, please, don’t come with the ‘I didn’t ask for anything’, because that’s not gonna cut it. Those two are your family and, in my books, we do anything for family. And me and Stiles… You guys took us in, we don’t have anyone else. Maybe it’s not like that for you guys, but you are family for us.”  
  
Derek nods. “It is, Dex.”  
  
“So, don’t ever pull this crap again and… I don’t know what you were doing and you don’t need to tell me, but I want you to consider something. Those hunters? They were there waiting for us, they were not tired, they were not running, they were expecting us. That was a trap.”  
  
“Dex, don’t read this much into…”  
  
“Don’t patronize me. It may work with the others, not with me. I’m going downstairs, risking my life again, so don’t.”  
  
Derek starts to laugh at this.  
  
“I’m hungry too, maybe I should…”  
  
“Oh, no. You will apologize to Stiles. I’ll bring food for you guys.” He stands up. “Come on, he is waiting for you.”  
  
They leave the room, each one going to a different direction. Derek’s takes him to Stiles room, where he is reading a book laying down in his bed. When he listen to the door open, the boy sits down.  
  
“You are not Dexter.”  
  
“No, I’m not. But I’m here because he sent me. To apologize.”  
  
“Oh, it’s okay, dude. It’s not the first time or will be the last that I’m knock out like that. I learned to take it like a champ. Even so I would prefer not have to go through that again.”  
  
“Yeah, I know. It’s just that… Dexter told me something today that kind of stuck with me. We run around, fighting, throwing things at each other forgetting that you are a human. You are vulnerable and… I’m sorry I didn’t thought about it there. I should have protect you.”  
  
Stiles can see how guilty the guy was feeling. It make him sad.  
  
“We are all vulnerable, Derek. I’m just… more physically vulnerable. The jokes and the throwing around, that does not bother me. The fighting? I’m here to help. I’m here to fight with you guys. So it’s all good. Really.”  
  
“Okay, then.”  
  
They hear a grumble and look at each other. Stiles starts to laugh. “I think this is my stomach.”  
  
“I don’t doubt it. Your bother was going to bring us food, right? Where is he?”  
  
x.x.x  
  
Dexter is successful in attacking the kitchen without being caught by Ms. Hale. Now, taking the stairs to find his room again, he was expecting the same result. However, in the way, he is distracted by an open door. It was Eliot’s room. He goes there, thinking about offering some of the cookies, but hands pulling him inside, throwing him against the wall surprises him. He is even more surprised when Eliot gets close, so close they could fell each other breathe. The werewolf looks at him, searching for permission. And as soon as he gets, they kiss.  
  



	8. Some Much Needed Talks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So guys, first of all, i do need to apologize. I didn't expected it to get this long to finished. But there was a lot of things hapenning to me since the end of last year, including the death of a very dear member of my family, so my mind was kind of a mess. By the time i could actually make something for this fic, i was already too embarrassed to post one chapter and make you guys wait for the rest. So I made my mind in wait a little longer and posted the all thing as soon as i finished it. Today i finished it, so i'm posting it.
> 
> I really hope you guys enjoy the last few chapters and let me know what you though. There is a lot more material about Dexter that i wrote in Portuguese, that i can translate if you guys are interested. Also, i'm reposting the Death of Dexter Coburn fic, which shows Dexter coming to Beacon Hills and how the druid thing develops while follow the all season 3A. If anyone is interested, you can just go there, read, subscribe, whatever. I already wrote the all thing, but now i got an amazing beta to take out the stupid mistakes i make. 
> 
> Anyway, that's it. Read, comment, complain to me on [tumblr](http://lenonizi.tumblr.com/) , whatever

After a while, Derek gave up in waiting for the food and went to his room. Stiles just ended up sleeping. He didn’t see the blushed and sweat Dexter that entered the room at two in the morning. He was so unconscious he didn’t hear the boy taking a shower before finally going to sleep.  
  
That makes the day to start extremely weird to everybody. Ms. Hale still has the disapproving face, that would probably least until they died, and nobody is really ready for school. Especially Dexter, who don’t look like slept at all.  
  
“Can you at least open your eyes?” Laura says when he bumps into a table.  
  
“I’m tired…” He repeats the mantra that is in his head since he wakes up. “I did use more magic than I should yesterday and we got home pretty late.”  
  
“But you were not that sleepy yesterday.” Derek says getting in his car. “I was waiting for the food in your room with Stiles, but you took hours to go from the kitchen.”  
  
Dexter scratches his head, giving a quick glance at Eliot, whom is getting his things in his car to go. “I got distracted… Can I go with you today?”  
  
“Why?” Stiles and Laura asked together, getting the attention of the other boys.  
  
“We have the same first class, right? Geometry?”  
  
“Yes, I forgot.” Derek says, still not convinced. “But we can like get together there or…”  
  
Dexter sighs, entering the car without waiting for the permission. “Can you just drive?” He yawn. “I so need this day to end right now…”  
  
The drive is silent, with Derek and Laura looking at each other in the front seat while Dexter lean his head in the window of the back seat.  
  
Laura turns completely to see Dexter face. He is dead sleep in the two minutes the car takes to get out of the driveway. She then looks at her brother. “So… we are not even gonna ask?”  
  
He shrugs. “You are welcome to. Do you think he will answer?”  
  
She has an evil smile in her face when she answers. “With the right motivation…”  
  
In Eliot’s car, everything is silent too. That was normal enough, Stiles and Eliot never had much to talk about. But this time, Stiles tries to start a conversation.  
  
“So, are you still angry at Derek?”  
  
“Aren’t you?”  
  
“Well, yeah, but… You know… He is sorry.”  
  
“I know, he told me that.” Eliot don’t take his eyes off the road e Stiles rolls his eyes, giving up on the talk.  
  
They got to the school and he finds Laura. They would have the same class that day. She is usually not so excited about it as she looked in that particular moment.  
  
“You know what we have to do, right?” She says as soon as they get in the classroom.  
  
“Work things out with your brothers?”  
  
She turns to him, frowning. “What are you talking about?”  
  
“Eliot. He is really pissed at Derek for yesterday.”  
  
“So? I’m too, but that is not the problem.” She overlooks the situation without a second thought. “I want to know what is happening to Dexter. He was not supposed to be as tired as he was today.” She explains with the curiosity in every word.  
  
Stiles rolls his eyes. “I don’t even know why that surprises me.” He takes a deep breath and then looks at her, curious too. “You know I’m actually thinking about that too. He is usually like this when he uses too much magic. But other than the sock and fire thing, I don’t think he did much more yesterday.”  
  
“Maybe he didn’t sleep well. Does he has nightmares or stuff like that?”  
  
“Maybe…” He frowns. “I don’t know; I am a very heavy sleeper.”  
  
Laura shakes her head. “Damn it, I need information! I told Derek to figure it out, but you do know my brother. He is terrible with people.”  
  
“Oh, yeah, that he is…”  
  
Two classrooms away, their words is being confirmed when Derek tries to ask Dexter again why he is so tired.  
  
“I don’t know why you guys care so much, honestly. I’m just sleepy…” He crosses his arms and put his head over them.  
  
“Well, I think the problem is that is not just that. Why didn’t you want to go with my brother? Did you two had a fight or something? He is very stubborn when he wants to and…”  
  
Dexter can’t not contain his laughter. “You are kidding me? He is stubborn? You are the worst, Derek, come on!”  
  
“I don’t know what you are talking about.” Derek turns to the top of the classroom, knowing the conversation was taking a turn he was not ready to follow.  
  
Dexter touches his shoulder. “Oh, no, you started this, now you will listen. You got away from home after a big attack to your pack. We go after you and now your Mother won’t look at any of us. We don’t even know why, because you can’t say it to anyone. You talk about me seeming troubled, but you look troubled for a long time now. The thing is mine is so easy to solve and I can talk to people. Stiles, Laura, even you. Do you? Can you talk to us?”  
  
Derek now stares at his feet under the table. “I don’t want to talk.”  
  
“That’s the all problem, isn’t it? We can help if we don’t know what is going on…” He shrugs, going back to the arms crossed position. He don’t take long before saying: “We can make a deal. I tell if you tell.”  
  
“I don’t want to tell…” Derek insists in saying.  
  
“You are ridiculous. You are so afraid and… You know what?” Dexter rises his head. “Last night I was getting the food and while I was going to my room, you brother pulled me to him room and we kissed. And did some other things too. So, yes, today I kinda preferred to drive with you because it’s a little weird. That is it. My big secret. Lasted what? Eitgh hours…”  
  
Derek turns to Dexter, not even pretending not to be completely surprise. “My brother pulled you to his room? My brother?”  
  
“Unless something possessed him, yes.” He younger shrugs.  
  
“And did you… you know… kissed him back?”  
  
“No, Derek, I ran across the house asking for help. Of course I did. I don’t know if you realizes, but your brother is actually quite hot. But I don’t think you got the point of what I’m trying to say. I opened up to you. I’m telling you something I didn’t tell anyone, not even Stiles, because I trust you. It is your turn now.”  
  
He waits, thinking maybe that would actually word, believing that he could reach Derek.  
  
“If you tell me just so I tell you something back, it’s not really trust, is it?”  
  
“Oh, god, you are so frustrating…” Dexter sighs, trying to control his urge to throw Derek to the other side of the room.  
  
Derek tries to concentrate in his class, but Dexter words are stuck in his mind. He don’t want to talk about it. He can tell people he is dating… not dating, making out with an Argent. That is the most stupid thing a werewolf could do. But every time he tries to leave her, somehow he is back at her arms. She had a hold to him he could never understand. However, now it is scaring him. Those people were right; last night was a trap. He could be dead. Even worst, he could have caused the death of his brother, sister or even Stiles and Dexter. He would never forgive himself if that happened.  
  
He was happy when the bell ringed and he changed classes. Now he would not have to deal with the judgmental looks of Dexter. When he gets in the classroom, he remembers who sits next to him in that class. Kate. He is suddenly not that much happier.  
  
His reaction was probably like Eliot’s when he realizes his next class is with Stiles. He knows the guy is just worried and the fact that he thinks the weird vibe is about Derek only makes things worst. How can he explain to him that it has nothing to do with his own brother, but with Stiles’ brother?  
  
They sit next to each other because that is what they are supposed to do. That is what his Mother told them to do. And as the good son Eliot is, he obeys again. But he knows it’s not a good idea.  
  
“So, I really think you should not be as mad as you are to Derek, because maybe he is dealing with something that is, you know, worse than we think and he just needs time to figure it out. How is he gonna talk to us if he thinks we are mad at him? It will only make him more withdrawn and, honestly, I don’t even know how that’s possible and…”  
  
“Oh my god, Stiles, shut up!” He can take this anymore. It’s too many words, too fast and too senseless. “I’m not mad about my brother. I mean, I am, but it’s not such a big deal. It’s okay.”  
  
Stiles looks at him, really paying attention this time. He is so stupid, sometimes he wants to punch himself in the face.  
  
“This is not about Derek, it’s about you. What is going on?”  
  
“Nothing, I…”  
  
“Ah, now you shut up. You Hales are unbelievable and I’m sick of it. You keep this charade of brave and strong people, but really are a bunch of idiots that can’t even talk about stuff you have to…”  
  
Eliot closes his hands in his table, applying a little more strength than necessary. “Careful, boy, you don’t want to…”  
  
“What? Overstep my boundaries? I’m just telling you the truth. Because it’s really frustrating to care about you people when you can never, ever trust us. We are risking our lives too, you know? You guys are in a war and we are right in the middle of this and…”  
  
“It has nothing to do with the hunters…” Eliot takes a deep breath. “It has to do with your brother.”  
  
That makes Stiles swallow surprised. “What do you mean, my brother…”  
  
“Well, last night, Dexter and I, we… kind of…” He is looking for the right word to describe what happened. He was terrible at this.  
  
“Did you guys make out?” A smile comes across Stiles’ face. “That what this is all about? The faces, the driving with Derek? You guys are such idiots!”  
  
“Hey!”  
  
“You are. So what you make out? You can fucking marry and nobody has nothing to do with it!” The smiles keeps increasing as he realize the stupidity this all day was.  
  
“That is not the problem. I just… I need to talk to him so I know what is going on. I don’t like things… unsolved.”  
  
“Well, did you like it?”  
  
Eliot looks at the door, thinking he would rather be anywhere else. “I don’t want to…” He then sees Stiles’ face and just know he would not give up. “Yes, I liked it.”  
  
“And did he liked it?”  
  
“I don’t… How do I know?”  
  
Stiles can’t stop laughing after that. “Well… by his… reactions.”  
  
“I will not describe his…”  
  
“I don’t want you to describe it, just…”  
  
“Yes, Stiles, yes.” He answer fast, trying to erase that moment from his mind.  
  
“So, nothing to talk about.” He then turns to the teacher, whom already has a frown face directed to them. He smiles and start make some notes about what was on the board. “I’m happy for you guys.”  
  
When the classes ended and the five teenager get together, the air is much cleaner. Derek told Laura about the hook up and he was all over Dexter and Eliot, making the most uncomfortable questions she could. They made a point to ignore every single one of them.  
  
“We still need to talk.” Eliot says while they get out of the car in the garage of their house.  
  
“I know.” Dexter responds, but he is distracted.  
  
There is unexpected movements in the house, with workers getting in and out of it. They get into the living room to find Ms. Hale giving instructions for a kid not much older than they are.  
      
“So you get all the tables available. I need everything read for Friday.”  
  
“What about Friday?” Eliot is the first to ask.  
  
“It’s a gathering. All members of the pack, alphas from other places, they all will come and fix an alliance. We will bring down those hunters once and for all.”  



	9. At the house of the enemy

The following days were just insane. Between school and the preparations for the gathering, they didn’t have time for nothing. They couldn’t even train that week, which was a big thing to let go under the circumstances. But Ms. Hale had a plan and, when that happens, nothing can stop her to fulfill it.

So, it was no surprise how exhausted the five teenagers were when they got to school that Friday. That would be the day of the gathering, so all they had to do was surviving one day. Just that day.

Derek was a little easier to talk to in the last few days. Maybe guilty were playing a part in that change. But he didn’t try to escape the house even once. He probably would not be able to, but something in Stiles mind just assured him that he was good, that he could see Kate now.

Dexter and Eliot didn’t have much time to talk, but they got into a good situation where fooling around was allowed and expected. They did tried to keep it from Eliot’s Mother, considering all the things she already had to deal with. 

Laura, of course, couldn’t be more happy about one more thing to tease her brother about. She didn’t lost an opportunity to hug Dexter and say the most inappropriate things just to make her brother uncomfortable. To a certain degree, Dexter liked that. It was good making Eliot realize how he was so caught up in some stupid things.

So, it is in that anxious environment that the class begins that day. That is one of the only classes that Stiles and Dexter do together. Derek was there too and, for their lucky, Kate Argent. She passes by them with a smile and looks straight to Derek. He doesn’t move, not breaking the eye contact, not showing any reaction to her. That upsets her, because when she sits down, Stiles and Dexter can fell her eyes in the back of their necks.

“She just freaks me out.” Dexter says, shivering.

“All of us, Dex… All of us.” Stiles says pretending he is paying attention to the class. 

In reality, he is calculating how much time they have. He knows that the situation is getting uglier by the minute. The tension between the hunters and the werewolves, the attacks, it was all getting too intense to be contained. Maybe their presence changed how the fire would be started, since Derek doesn’t seem to trust Kate anymore, but it probably doesn’t change the plan. They would try to burn the house. Stiles just didn’t know how.

He talked to Dexter about it the night before. About the need to predict their next move and stop it before get to a point with no turning back.

The perfect situation is presented through a homework. They would have to work in pairs and as soon as the teacher says that, Dexter has his hand up in the air.

“I’m doing it with Kate Argent.” He says without even thinking. The girl looks at him with an ice-cold smile. She knows he is up to something. She knows it was a challenge. She was happy to accept it.

“Oh, yeah, we can do it at my house this afternoon.”

The all class can feel the tension, but nobody really knows why. Only Stiles and Derek look at each other, thinking what the hell was going on in Dexter’s mind.

x.x.x

“You are so not doing it.” It’s all Eliot can say when he hears about that conversation. “No way in hell.”

“Yes, I will.” Dexter don’t back down, which, of course, is expected by all of the people in that table. They are still on campus, but in an open area with tables so that the students can have lunch. In the table are Laura, Derek, Stiles, Eliot and Dexter.

“I just don’t understand why you are doing this.” It is Derek’s time to talk. “You know who she is. And you are going to her house? Today? That’s just plain stupid.”

“No, it’s not.” Dexter says again, tired of having to explain his plan all over again. “It’s just a simple recon mission. They won’t do anything to me for the risk of exposing themselves. That is the all reason why there was never an attack directly to us, right? Adults? That’s easy to come up with an excuse. But kids? Especially one that everybody knows is going to their house? I’m saver than I’m here.”

“But it’s too much of a risk for a hunch.” Laura says, finally. “You think, maybe, they are planning something. Even if they were, do you think they would let a ‘how to kill werewolves’ playbook at the kitchen table, ready for you to read it? They are smarter than that.”

“Don’t underestimate me, that’s what they are doing.” Dexter reminders her with a smile. “Any information will help, you know that. I’m good with connecting stuff, but I need to have something to connect. Right now, we have nothing.”

“Better have nothing but alive than have information and be dead!” 

Eliot throws his hand against the table, almost breaking it in half. All the students around glare at them, but he doesn’t care. He just wants to put in Dexter’s mind how crazy all of that was. The problem is that, looking at the youngest face, he could see the determination. Dexter is so sure of what he has to do, Eliot had no idea how to persuade him otherwise.

“When you come to our home, you said the hunters wanted you.” He says very slowly, trying to keep his cool. “You were scared and alone and that’s why we took you in. But now you want to go inside the mouth of the monster. How do you know that’s not exactly what they want? How do you know they won’t capture you and use you against us?”

Dexter is so angry with himself in that moment. Because that was the lie he had to come up with, that was the lie that got him inside of the Hale house. Now it was back to bite him in the ass.

“I would never do anything to hurt you guys, you know that. I have a lot more control over myself now that I ever had before. It’s a risk, of course, but it’s one I’m willing to take.” He sighs, not knowing what else to say. “Look, my fighting skills are okay at best, that’s my way to help. You guys can’t take that away from me…”

The brothers and sister look to each other, having no more arguments to use. Dexter complains about their stubbornness, but look at what he was doing now.

Derek looks at the other side of the table, where Stiles is playing with a piece of paper. He seems completely unaware of what was happening. This is not Stiles. He is opinionative, energetic and loves to babble. He never saw him that quite, that… concentrated. It concerned him. It actually takes Derek by surprise. He didn’t realized how much he cared about Stiles until that very moment.

“Stiles.” He says carefully. The boy let the piece of paper go and look at him. “What do you think about all this?”

“What I think?” He sighs and shakes his head. “I think is crazy. I think Dexter should never had said anything and what I want to do right now is kill him for being that stupid and reckless and not thinking about what other peoples may feel if something happens to him.” Dexter swallows, definitely not expecting that response. “But I also think is a good idea. It’s his life and honestly? If there is anyone that can pull it off, it’s him…”

Dexter let a sigh of relive leave his body. He looks at Stiles, confirming he was okay, thanking for the support. The other didn’t seem happy at all.

At this point, Eliot wants to scream. How can’t they see the craziness of that plan? “Well, I don’t care if you agree or not, Stiles, he is not doing it. I’m the oldest and the second in command, so…”

“Not in a million years!” Dexter protests, maybe louder than he should. “I’m not a wolf in your pack that just lower my head at the will of an alpha. You don’t tell me what to do.”

They stares at each other for a while, testing their own will. In any other situation, Laura would find it funny. In that case, not so much.

“I know that you will not just accept an order like that,” she begins, trying to save the situation, “but you have to agree that the things you do will affect us. So I suggest a vote. We are five, we can come up with a decision. Is that okay with you?”

Dexter doesn’t look to pleased. He nods with no enthusiasm before casting his vote. “I obviously vote in yes. It’s my life and I know what I’m doing. It’s not even that big of a deal, it’s just…”

“Shut up.” Laura stops him before it goes farther than it should. “Stiles?”

He looks at his friend, deep in his eyes, looking for something that would change his mind. He doesn’t find. So he just spill a “yes”.

“Eliot?”

“Not in a million years.” He responds without hesitation. No surprise there.

“Derek?”

“I really don’t think is worth the risk. Sorry, Dex, but it’s a no.”

Laura let a small smile go through her mouth. Of course she would be the one deciding. “Look, I’m all against suicide missions just like the next person. But I also knows how is like to have something telling you what to do all the time in your life. It’s not health, it doesn’t help you to grow up and make the right decisions. So, if you wanna do this, even knowing all the crazy stuff it could lead to, you go. You do what you have to do. And I will give you all the support you need.”

The hours leading up to Dexter going into the Argent’s house are funny, at a minimum. Eliot doesn’t leave Dexter’s side for nothing and the guy is ready to punch the other in the face so he would stop. He does understand, however, the concern. He is even happy about it.

Therefore, when it’s time for him to leave the car and walk to the front door, Eliot’s face is not the most encouraging one.

“I will be okay.” Dexter repeats, rolling his eyes. “Now go.”

He walks very slowly, thinking maybe that was not his greatest idea. Whatever. It’s not like his others ideas were that much better. He did come back in time to change everything about the future, so…

Dexter ring the bell and soon the door is open by an older man. He know that face from pictures. The creepy eyes, the way he always seems to know something terrible about you. Gerard Argent.

“Hi.” Dexter says trying not to show any reaction. “I’m here to see Kate? We are supposed to…”

“Homework, I know.” The man interrupts, giving Derek space to go inside. “She is waiting for you.”

Dexter enters the house, feeling a lot of eyes in the back of his neck. It’s a big house, maybe even bigger than the Hale’s, and he was definitely not alone inside. He could see Kate waiting for him in the leaving room and many other people passing by.

She smiles. It’s like that was a part of her, hide all her hate and disgust behind that smile. “Hello, Dexter. Are you excited about the work?”

“You have no idea.” He smiles back. “Where will we be doing it?”

“Dinner table.” She takes his hand and lead him to the dinner room. “Sorry about the mess and all those people running around. We are gonna have an… event today. So we are preparing.”

“What kind of… event?” She wants to play and Dexter is ready for this.

“Oh, it’s kind of a celebration? My family has been conducting some… business for a while now. We knew at some point it would work out, it always does, but that one took a little more time than expected. We are solving this now.”

“Really? And what happened to change this all situation?”

“Well…” She spreads her material in the table, getting the book they would use in the assignment. “It’s like the perfect opportunity was just dropped in our laps.”

Dexter doesn’t miss the threat in her voice. He doesn’t miss all the looks not only she, but everyone in the house give him the all time they are working in the assignment. He actually feels like an animal that is about to be put to death. He straight himself up in the chair, trying to keep his cool. It’s harder than he thought. Yeah, that was a terrible idea.

“I need to… go to the bathroom.” He interrupts Kate, who instructs him through the right path.

He walks paying an enormous attention to everything he passes by. He knows they have an advantage and, at that point, with all those people at the house, it seems like he is the advantage. Terrible, terrible idea.

He enters the bathroom and closes the door, being able to breathe again. He needs to think of something, a way out. But actually… something else is on his mind. Kate said they had an ‘opportunity dropped in their laps’, one that would make them solve everything, but Dexter… Having Dexter wouldn’t solve nothing. At best they would have some information and use his powers, that they don’t even know he has, so… it can’t be him. He is of no use to them, especially with the fact that they don’t know he is a druid. He was so caught up in his own lies that he forgot about that. So, it has to be something else…

That’s when he realized what it was, how stupid he was being. The gathering… every werewolf of the pack, every alpha from the surrounds, it was so obvious he wants to punch himself in the face. That’s the opportunity. They probably are keeping track of what happens in the Hale house and the demonstration of strength from Ms. Hale can end up getting everybody killed.

Now he had to get out of there even more. He had to find a way. Then he remembered something Mr. Argent said to him once. Always be prepare. Always have a way to be prepared. He looks around the bathroom and find exactly what he needs.

Dexter get back to the dinner room with a worried look.

“Kate, I need to go home.” He announces, getting his things together.

“But, Dexter, we didn’t finished the assignment.” She has a nervous look, like the assignment is the most important thing in the world.

“Yes, but I can finished it for us. Or we can get together another day, we still have time…”

He stands up and five men appears in the entrance of the room, behind Kate. She also stands up, her evil smile never leaving her face.

“I don’t think we do, Dexter.”

“Actually…” Dexter has a grin in his face. He puts on his backpack and then his hands in his pockets. “We kind of do.”

The next events happens so fast all the training of the hunters couldn’t have prepared them for this. Dexter’s eyes shines, like it always do when Dexter uses magic. Then he throws something that was in his pocket. It’s a smoke bomb. When the hunters finally starts to react, Dexter throws another bomb behind him. It breaks the window and allow him to jump outside the house and start to run.

x.x.x

When Derek and Stiles see Dexter running in the direction of the car, they know what to do. They get inside, leaving a door open, so that Dexter can enter the vehicle and they can go away before the hunters catch them. Stiles is nervous, looking to the back seat, where Dexter is trying to breathe normal again. It’s not that easy after running as much as he did.

“What happened?” Stiles asks, without the patience to wait for the friend to talk. No surprise there.

“Well, we were right.” He says between sharp breathes. “They are up to something. And I think is tonight.”

Derek is tempted to look to the back seat, but he keeps his eyes in the road. Dexter would explain better when they get back home. At least that is what he expects.

As soon as Derek parks in front of his house, Dexter gets running again. Derek and Stiles go after him and, when they find him, he is the kitchen talking really fast with Ms. Hale.

“You need to cancel this thing like right now! The hunters are coming and it’s like a trap and they want all the people here because that way they can kill everyone at the same time and…”

“Dexter!” The woman says and like magic Dexter stops talking. Just then he notices all the people around them, not only Derek, Stiles, Laura and Eliot, but everybody that is preparing the place for the gala. He swallows. He knows she is not very happy with him at this point, but he can’t give up. It’s just too important.

“We need to talk.” He says finally, getting his act together. “Now.”

He follows her to her office. The other four go after them but, when they get to the door, it gets slam in their faces. They look at each other. That was a bad sign.

“Should we like, help him?” Stiles asks going through the face of Derek, Laura and Eliot.

“You are welcome to nod, but…” Laura has a half smile. “I don’t recommend.”

Eliot shakes his head. “I said it was a bad idea, I told you guys and…”

“Shut up!” Derek says and everybody look at him. “He was trying to do something. And he did it, or he would not be talking to our mother right now. So you guys should just keep calm and wait for them to get out.”

He takes a chair (there were a lot of them spread throughout the house for the gala) and sits. He then points to other chairs so the others could do the same. They obey without enthusiasm. They never liked waiting.

Inside the office, things were not much better. Ms. Hale looks very angry when Dexter explains to her where he was spending his afternoon.

“I was just trying to get information to help you guys and…” He notices her face. She don’t want him to continue. He is smart enough to stop.

“So you went to the house of the Argents. Not any Argent, but Gerard Argent.” She repeats the story, in such more threatening way, Dexter becomes more afraid now than when he was in the house. “And what you want was to get informations to help us? By putting your life in danger and giving the hunters the chance to have the powers of a druid in their hands?”

“I wasn’t planning to get kidnaped.” He defended himself. She don’t even react. “Look, I know it was dangerous and everything, but I knew what I was doing. And it paid off, I’m here and I have information.”

“You have information they wanted you to have.” She says calmly, which somehow just makes it worse. “You put yourself in a situation where they could do whatever they wanted with you and now you are here, which only leads me to believe you are doing exactly what they want you to.”

Dexter shakes his head. He can’t believe what she is insinuating. “What do you mean? What do you think? That I’m helping them?”

“No intentionally, no. However, you always had a problem, since the day you got here. You think you always knows what is going on, you are always the smarter in the room. It may work with my children, but it does not work with hunters. They are trained for this, to manipulate, to make you think you are save or that you are in danger in the moment they want you to.”

Dexter looks to the ground, not knowing what to say. He knows what is gonna happen. Not only because of what Kate said, but because of what happened in the future. His future. He just don’t know how to tell her that. “Ms. Hale, they are coming. They are coming for everyone that gets in this house and I’m pleading you, stop this from happening. You need to listen to me.”

“I’m. The gala will happen and if the hunters dare to try something, we will be ready. But I don’t think they would. This place will be filled with werewolves ready to attack and protect their home.” She has the determination that he admires so much in her. However, this time, it’s not just that. He can see it, through the face of a fearless leader. Pride.

“Please, don’t do this. Gerard is crazy. He is a psychopath. Don’t bet the lives of all those people in the assumption they would be scared of you.” He pleads, desperate for her to believe in him.

“So, I should risk their lives in the hunch of a sixteen years old boy? This is my pack, it’s my decision.”

“The wrong decision!” He insists.

“If you don’t think I’m able to protect you and your brother, you are welcome to go. My pack is staying.”

He stares at her, looking for a way in, some indication she would be able to actually hear him. Nothing. He stands up. He knows he lost his battle.

“I can’t be here and watch you guys die.”

He walks to the door and opens it. The others stand as soon as they see him and, based on his face, they knew the conversation wasn’t pretty.

“What happened?” Eliot jumps to ask. 

Ms. Hale appears at the door of her office. She answers first. “Dexter is leaving. Anyone that doesn’t think I can protect them, can go with him.”

Laura turns to her mother. “What are you… What is going on?”

“He can’t go, the hunters…” Eliot continues.

“As I said…” She stops them, every word carefully chosen to show much she means them. “Anyone that doesn’t think I can protect them, can go with him. My house. My pack.”

Dexter looks at her. “I’m telling you the truth. I’m sorry you can’t see that.” He turns to his friends and shrugs. He don’t have anything to say anymore. 

Stiles walk to be by his side. He looks at his supposed brother with a sad smile. They walk out the door, leaving three shocked teenagers behind.


	10. An Unnecessary Death

Dexter and Stiles are sited outside of the Hale’s house. They can see the movement inside the place, people still working while the guests arrived. They didn’t know any of them, but they still exam them by far, searching for any indication that they are not who they claim to be.  
  
Dexter explained the all situation for Stiles. How Ms. Hale dismissed everything he told her, even though he was certain of what he was saying. That he was frustrated because he could not tell her about the future or she would not trust him and that by not doing so, he got the same results. It was such a complicated situation, Stiles didn’t even know what to say.  
  
The only thing they agreed is that they can’t just leave, they couldn’t just let those people die. They just didn’t know what to do to stop them. So they sat there, looking around for something to confirm the attack they knew it would happen.  
  
Of course, their observation skills are not the best, because when Laura and Derek appears next to them, Dexter and Stiles almost scream.  
  
“Dude!” Stiles manages to say, pressing his hands against the floor. “You don’t do that to people that are in guard!”  
  
“Is this you in guard?” Derek laughs. “If I were a hunter, you would be dead.”  
  
“Thanks for the pep talk, I had enough with your mother.” Dexter says. He stands up to face the two werewolves. “Does she wants us to leave here too? Because we are only here to try and protect you guys, even though you are too stubborn to believe what I’m saying and…”  
  
“We are here to help, dumbass.” Laura interrupts him, shaking her head. “Maybe that’s why my mother didn’t believe you, you just can’t stop when you are winning…”  
  
A smile rises in Dexter face. “You guys believe me? Really?”  
  
“You did follow me through the woods and kept me from being murder.” Derek shrugs, with a half-smile in his face. “It’s the least I can do.”  
  
Laura gives him a pat on his shoulder, showing support. “And I’m just so excited to prove my mother wrong; I’m almost hoping you are right.”  
  
“She is going to kill you two, right or wrong.” Stiles says putting his hands on the shoulder of Laura and Derek, positioning himself between them. “Welcome to the dog house. No pun intended.”  
  
Derek rolls his eyes. “So, what now? We sit here and complain about my mother?”  
  
“Even though it’s a nice idea, now that we have better numbers, maybe we can come up with a more invasive approach.” Dexter suggests, pulling Laura to his side. “Divide and conquer.”  
  
Stiles is not so happy with how they were divided. After all, Dexter would go with Laura, making jokes about everyone from the Hale household, actually able to have a conversation while waiting for hunters to attack and try to kill then. It would make so much sense if it were he and Dexter or even he and Laura. But no, he had to get Derek. Frowned, quiet, frustrating Derek.  
  
Of course Stiles would trip and fall with his face in the ground. And of course Derek would just pull him up, almost getting his arms out.  
  
“Pay attention.” The guy says getting back to the search before Stiles even get his balance back.  
  
“Okay, sir.” Stiles rolls his eyes. “I will try not to trip again. Since it is the most lovely feeling in the world, it’s going to be an uphill battle, but…”  
  
“Stiles!” Derek says, more aggressively this time. He puts his hands in the air, close to Stiles’ neck, but stops himself. “Are you kidding me?”  
  
“What? I’m a little scared about all the people coming to kill us, so yeah, maybe I’m making a little more jokes than necessary to calm myself down, is that so wrong? Is that…”  
  
“Nothing is gonna happen to you, Stiles.” Derek assures him, trying to put a warmer tone in his voice. At least as warmer as he can get. “Or to your brother, if that’s one of your worries.”  
  
Stiles lowers his head, kicking a random piece of wood that is in front of him. “You don’t know that. Nobody do. I mean, those hunters are…” He takes a deep breathe, remembering himself he can’t say everything to Derek. Hiding thing is so much harder than he thought. “They are crazy psychos, they destroy everything that stands in their way and use everyone, it’s…” He then stares at Derek, who seems lost in his own thoughts. Stiles knows what he is thinking. Kate. He now knew that she was using him, that she was evil. It was about time.  
  
The werewolf finally looks up. “Well, I have been dealing with them for a while now. They are dangerous and everything, but I would not count us out of that fight. My mother will see, one way or another, that we can’t pretend things are not happening. And if she does not… We are here. We’ll fight.”  
  
“Oh yeah, we will. I just have to decide if that is a good or a bad thing.” Stiles gives a half smile. “Last time I was kind of unconscious.”  
  
“I will not apologize for that again.” Derek says, putting his hands on Stiles shoulder. “But I won’t let it happen again either.”  
  
They stay quiet for a while, staring at each other, not knowing what to say. That was a first for Stiles, who always had something witty in his back pocket. This time, he was just glad Derek was there.   
  
At the other side of the property, things were not going as good as Stiles had predicted. No jokes, no happy and warm conversation, just the two teenagers looking around, waiting to be attacked, with a lot more in their minds then they should.  
  
Laura is thinking this is really weird. Dexter was never the quiet kind of guy. And she could deal with quiet guys living with her brothers for all those years. But what do you do when you have a guy who is always talking, but don’t want to talk? Do you just ask? Is it that easy?  
  
“Ok, is this about my mother?” She stops walking and Dexter, who is a step ahead of her, turns his head to face her. He has this confused and hunted look in his face that makes her worry even more.  
  
He sighs. He knows her enough to realize she wouldn’t give up. He would talk, wanting or not. “Not just that, even though it makes me pissed she couldn’t listen to me.”  
  
“She never listen to anyone, so…”  
  
“It’s a bit about the fact that I think this night is gonna change everything.” He says in such an enigmatic way that she is the one who looked confused. She don’t even ask, just waits for him to continue. “Like, I’m not very used to this druid thing and I never like… predicted anything or… I just have this feeling.” He shakes his head. It’s difficult to find the right words. He glaze the sky, maybe searching for the answer there. He don’t find it. So he turn to Laura and shrug. “I don’t know how to explain.”  
  
“Honestly, I was never the most excited about the all supernatural shit.” She starts to walk again and Dexter follows her. “But I have the advantage of having people around that knew pretty much everything there is to know about werewolves. So I was… educated? I will go with that. You haven’t, so everything you are going through is experimenting. You shouldn’t be guilty about having weird feelings, you should use them. Maybe is just one more trick you can do.”  
  
“Or maybe I’m going crazier than I thought I was…” He smiles sadly.  
  
“You are making out with my brother.” Laure teases, provoking the reaction she was hoping for. A real smile. “No normal person do that.”  
  
“Most not be that great, if he is in there.” He points at the mansion, all illuminated, the sounds of the music reaching them in the distance.  
  
She follows the gaze, stopping the walk again. “My brother is nothing but loyal. After my father died and my mother became the alpha, she was so scared…”  
  
Dexter can hold a laugh when he heard this. For what he knew about Ms. Hale, that was impossible.  
  
“Really. She didn’t… she didn’t let everybody know, of course, but us? We knew. And Eliot just stood by her side and made sure she had everything she needed and… It’s my mother, she leaks loyalty and bravery and all those stuff werewolves love. He almost came, though. I never saw him so close to disagreeing with her.”  
  
“Well, at least you guys are here. I don’t know how much good that will do, but…”   
  
He stops talking when he sees Stiles and Derek approaching. They look at each other, confirming that they have seen no movement around.  
  
“I was so sure they would…” Dexter starts to say and then he sees a light passing in the corner of his eyes. He turns in that direction, but sees nothing. The other three look at him and he just shakes his head, dismissing the thought.  
  
They walk a little more, now the four of them together. They look at their clocks and Derek knows that if it was an attack, the hunters should be there at this point. They would have to go through them to get to the mansion. Unless…  
  
That is when it hits him. How they could go in without going through the woods, without passing by them. He remembers that one day he saw Kate in the school grounds, under the bleachers. It was not her favorite spot; she says only the sluts of the school would go there but they didn’t have anything better. She was weird that day, asking strange things. She asked how he got away from home without someone noticing. He said he knew a passage under the house, that was supposed to be blocked. He broke the rocks that blocked it. That was how he was getting out. And that is how they would get in.   
  
He looks desperate at his companions. Stiles never saw Derek as afraid as he was in that moment. The werewolf starts to run without giving an explanation, but the other don’t need one. They could figure out. They were waiting for the attack in the wrong place. The hunters were already inside.  
  
Derek and Laura get in the mansion first, using the speed their wolves give them. They are already transformed and ready to fight when they find the guarded surroundings of the place. There were hunters, more than they imagined, and the fight is highly unfair.  
  
When Dexter finally caught up with them, he pushes Stiles away.  
  
“If there is a moment you should hide and don’t say anything, is now!” He says to his best friend before joining the fight.  
  
At this point, they can see how the inside is exploding too. A lot of shots, a lot of yells and howls were heard on the outside and that only fueled the three teenagers with the anger to fight. Derek rips the chest of one of the attackers and Dexter uses the opportunity to get a hand on his weapon. It makes his participation in the fight more active when he has something to throw at them, instead of trying to throw them away.   
  
Laura was fearless too, attacking every one of the hunters as if they were guilty for all the wrongs in the world. Unfortunately, when they get inside the house, the mess is already made. The house is all on fire. The curtains, the all place is surrounded by it. It’s hard to breathe inside, so they try to get as many people out as they can. That is no more hunters inside. They probably fled the same way they got in.  
  
Eliot is helping them to get people out. Dexter feels better when he notices that. Other peoples of the pack are also helping the ones that are starting to become more ill. That was a different kind of fire. They probably used something to make it harder for the werewolves to survive. Hunters and their craftiness.   
  
Some small explosions start to happen in isolated places. Stiles knows it’s time for them to go. They start to run before the place collapse. Derek is in the yard trying to help people that were still trying to breathe. Stiles is doing the same. Laura is running around, making sure everyone got out. But than she sees her brother. He is staring at the fire, so fixated. She feels this warm coming from him, this security. She then see his eyes. They are red. He was an alpha and that could only mean one thing. He mother was dead.  
  



	11. Under the Nemeton

It was about sunset time when Eliot makes his first move. He was siting, looking at the opposite end of the shelter the five teenagers were hiding, and he changed his weight to the other side, leaning his body on the roots of a tree. He don’t say anything. Neither one of them do in the last six hours, which is the time they are in the basement under the Nemeton.  
  
Stiles had the idea, leading them there when the rest of the pack vanished to different places. They were all too worried about their families and loved ones to actually get organized at that point. Who could blame them? They all world just turned upside down.  
  
It was not just the fact that their alpha was murdered. It was the fact that she was in her house. That the hunters were bold enough to invade a party filled with werewolves, kill their people and go out unharmed. Their sense of security didn’t exist anymore. It was gone with Talia Hale.  
  
As for the kids, they were all pretty much like Eliot, siting, laying down, anyone of them being able to sleep, but also not being able to say anything. What did they had to say, anyway? For three of them, their mother was dead. Since their father died years ago, they were now orphans. They didn’t have a home anymore. They didn’t have a guide. Eliot was the alpha and he didn’t have any idea what to do with it.   
  
The first sound heard in the place was from Laura. She is laying down next to Dexter and she covers her face before she starts to cry. She don’t even know how it starts, she was doing so well. She was holding her emotions, trying to get herself controlled enough to actually think of something. But when she saw the little glimpses of the sunshine going through the small opening of the entrance, she realizes a new day had arrived. And they were all alone.  
  
Dexter turns at her, but he don’t know what to do. He wants to say something, to make her feel better, but that is just not possible. She has to cry. She has to put everything out, the faster she could, because they didn’t have the time.   
  
Stiles look at his friend with a sad face. An understanding face. He also didn’t know what to say to Derek, whom was sitting next to him, staring at his feet all night. He would give anything to make the other talk to him. To make him accept what he was feeling. Lost. Empty. Alone. But he knew the Hales. He knew Derek. It would not be that easy.  
  
“I’m hungry.” Dexter finally says. He could not take the silence anymore. He stands up e puts his hand in his jeans’ pocket. “I will get to the city, get something for us to eat and…”  
  
“You are not going to the city.” Eliot says without even moving. He don’t even look at Dexter. It’s like he is talking to a ghost.  
  
“We need to eat.” Dexter affirm walking towards him. “We can’t just stop.”  
  
“I said you are not going to the city.” He repeats and this time he looks at Dexter. His eyes are red and empty.   
  
Dexter wants to yell at him. He want to say to him that he is not his alpha, he could not just tell him what to do. That when he needed him to trust him, he didn’t. That maybe if he had, now everything would be okay. He was angry, so angry. And sad. And disappointed. He wants to scream, but he can’t. Eliot’s mother is dead.   
  
“He is right.” Derek stands up and walk towards the two of them. “We need to eat and… we need to do something. To come up with a plan. We can’t be here forever.”  
  
Eliot’s eyes are normal when he looks at Stiles and Laura. They agree.  
  
“The hunters will not try something in the middle of town. If they would, it would have happened before.” Derek continues.  
  
“The hunters don’t know who escaped.” Stiles says. He cross his legs and lean his head on his arm. “They probably just found the bodies outside the mansion and figured some of the werewolves managed to get out.”   
  
“That is good, we can use that.” Derek nods. He don’t hide the surprise for the statement. Stiles was better at this then he imagined. “Then I think the best idea is Dexter and Stiles going. Dexter can protect himself, but the hunters don’t know that.”  
  
“I don’t know about that.” Laura interrupts. “He did broke out of a house full of hunters.”  
  
“Well, they know he can do some magic.” Derek continues. “Anyway, it’s better than if they see one of us. They know that the alpha would be here. If Eliot had died in the fire…”  
  
“It would be me.” Laura swallows. She don’t like that idea.  
  
“And then me. They have a screwed up pack, if they get the alpha, there is not a chance.”  
  
“We should let them wonder, let them go crazy about it.” Dexter says, more excited now. “I’m almost wishing I find one of them now.”  
  
“I’m not.” Stiles stands too, checking his pockets. “I don’t have a lot of money, do you guys…”  
  
Eliot throws his wallet at Dexter, who takes the money and then give it back. “So… what do you guys want?”  
  
Stiles is surprise with the silence in the walk to the city. Even more surprise because he didn’t started a conversation. With Scott, it was always him pushing and saying stupid things and then the friends follows him. With Dexter, it was easier. The guy liked to talk as much as he did. That day? Nothing.  
  
“It’s not your fault.” Stiles can’t resist.   
  
“I know.” Dexter shrugs. “If we were inside, we would be dead with them. I doesn’t make it better.”  
  
“No, it don’t.” Stiles nods and look at his friend. “We didn’t stop the fire, though. You think we will get stuck here? Since we didn’t do what we needed to?”  
  
“I wish I knew. But I have a feeling we are not finished yet.”  
  
They don’t find any hunter, but use the time to clear their heads. They didn’t wanted to pressure the Hales, but they could not be hidden in that basement forever. It was such a messy situation.  
  
When they get back and Stiles starts to enter the basement, he notices Dexter stopping. “You don’t look so good.”  
  
“Yeah, I’m…” He is having trouble to breathe looking inside. Maybe he was too shocked the night before, but that place… he remembered only a couple of months ago, when he was fighting the power of a Darach, to stop a storm that would kill him and the parents of his friends. When Stiles saved them all and he passed out because he couldn’t help anymore. It make him sick. “I think I will eat here.” He goes through the bag of coffee and get two cupcakes.  
  
“Okay.” Stiles replies simply, understanding what the friend was going through. He don’t like the place either, but maybe his memories about it are not so traumatizing as the friend’s. Dexter did pass out seconds before the all place collapsed over him.  
  
Stiles gets inside and distributes the food. He sits and begin to eat. Laura is the first to go out. She says she can’t look at that damn tree anymore. She don’t know the half of it. Then it was Eliot, probably to apologize to Dexter. At the end, it was just Stiles and Derek.  
  
The werewolf finishes before Stiles. He then starts to look at Stiles’ cookie. The human makes a frown, but pushes the cookie in his direction. Derek give him a small smile before getting it.  
  
“You will have to do something for me in return.” Stiles warns him the second he touched the food.  
  
“What?” Derek has suspicion in his voice.   
  
“You don’t want to talk now and that is super okay, I didn’t want to talk to anyone when my mother died either. But whenever you want to, you come to me. Deal?”  
  
“That is a lot for just a cookie.” Derek says, avoiding eye contact.  
  
“Take it or leave it, man.”  
  
Derek’s eyes goes from the cookie to Stiles’ face. Maybe it was not such a bad idea, just talk to someone, open up a bit. He seriously considers the suggestion. He even tries to think of something to say. He can’t get the words together. It shouldn’t be this hard. It wasn’t hard to Dexter or Stiles, even Laura. He takes the cookie anyway, provoking a smile in Stiles. Maybe not now.  
  
Outside, Dexter is sited in a branch of a big tree, Eliot by his side. They are concentrated in their foods and their hot drinks. The druid finishes the drink and starts to play with the foam cup, breaking it in little pieces and putting them inside. Soon his cup was all broken and he had nowhere else to put the pieces. He see a cup in front of him. Eliot’s cup. He takes and does the same routine.  
  
“How do you think she is?” He hears Eliot say and automatically glances to Laura.   
  
“Better than you guys, I think.” Dexter shrugs. “At least she let it out a little. Showed vulnerability. It’s necessary sometimes.”  
  
“Not for an alpha.”   
  
“You don’t have even a day being an alpha, give yourself a break.”  
  
“We don’t have time for a break, Dex. We need to go after them. Now.”  
  
Dexter could see the same determination Ms. Hale showed him so many times. He could also see the anger.  
  
“Not now. It’s too soon and…”  
  
“They are not expecting now.” Eliot interrupts Dexter. “That is the perfect time.”  
  
“Maybe if we were machines going to a war, but…” He touches Eliot’s shoulder. “We are teenagers. You just lost your mother. I really think you need time.”  
  
“No, we don’t. And I already called my uncle. He is coming here and we will organize an attack. Tonight, when they won’t expect us.”  
  
Dexter stares at him. He can’t hold his jaw dropping. “This uncle of yours… What is his name?”  
  
“Peter. Peter Hale.”


	12. Another Attack

It is like every alarm in Dexter head starts to scream at him. He knew Peter Hale. He knew the guy always have hidden agendas. This attack was a mistake. He wants to tell all of this to Eliot, but he knows the new alpha. He knows the stubbornness of the Hales. He would not back down.  
  
Dexter waits a while, trying to be the less suspicious as possible, before climbing out of the tree. Eliot is concentrated, probably thinking about attack strategies, which only confirmed that that was no way for Dexter to convince him otherwise. He had to make other arrangements.  
  
Unfortunately, Peter Hale finds the place with no difficult. Dexter is next to Stiles when he gets inside the basement and, for both of them, is so weird seeing that younger version of him. He don’t seem as cynic as in the Peter they know (probably the lack of being burned alive and the psychotic breakdown), but he still seem malicious. And dangerous.  
  
“I talk to the other packs in the surrounds, they agree this is our best course of action, attack while they don’t expect and show that we are not as stupid as they think we are.” He says with such an excitement in his voice, like he is loving all this. Like he lives for moments like that.  
  
“Do they really?” Stiles is the one to talk, folding his arms around his chest. “Because, for me, it sounds incredibly stupid.”  
  
“Stiles…” Derek turns to him.  
  
“No, he is right.” Dexter defends his friend. “This is a pack that is not used to fight, that just lost their leader. They are mourning, they are angry and that is not good qualities for a combat. This means more people dying.”  
  
“You just got here, you know nothing about our pack.” Peter hiss. He don’t look too happy about the boys presence there. “I don’t even know why the druid is participating in this conversation, you are not even pack.”  
  
Dexter is close to send him to hell or whatever other place that could come out of his mind, when Eliot interrupts both of them.  
  
“This is not a discussion, it never was. There will be an attack, as I told you on the phone. They are giving their opinions with the intent to help their alpha because yes, you wanting it or not right now they are both pack. So I don’t want to hear any of this.”  
  
Peter stops talking and Stiles can see why. He probably don’t feel as much as the rest of them, as much as the werewolves, but the sense of authority emanating of Eliot is intoxicating. It’s like when he says something like that, with that tone and that will, all of his thoughts become mere memories in his head. He shakes his head. He don’t like that feeling.  
  
“They are still hunting, looking for us in the woods.” Peter continues. “So the plan is to attack them in one of those rounds. When they lost contact, they will send more and that is when we have our real fight. We take all of them down and we stop this.”  
  
“So, we kill everybody?” Laura asks with an accusatory look in her face.  
  
“They killed our mother.” Eliot says, his pain leaking in every word.  
  
Dexter walks towards him. He puts his hand in Eliot’s shoulder. “Yes, but… it’s got to be a better way them to kill all those people.”   
  
Peter smiles. “That is why druids are not fighters. We are.”  
  
“Sure,” Stiles defends his friend, “what can you expect of a species that actually uses their brains before going in a killing spree.”  
  
“They are nearly extinct, so I think we have the upper hand.” Peter replies sill with that annoying smile. Stiles really didn’t like the guy. “Also, there is something else we have to talk about.” He turns to Eliot. “We need to have all the muscles possible and a new born werewolf has enough instinct and is out of control enough to help us in this fight. So you should transform this human the faster you can so we can use him today.”  
  
That is the moment all hell breaks loose. Because suddenly everybody starts to talk at the same time and Dexter position himself in front of Stiles, ready to take down anybody that get nearly close.  
  
“That is not happening.” He says to a condescending Peter, who just looks like he don’t understand why all the fuzz.  
  
“That’s ridiculous, we can’t force him to become a werewolf and we don’t even know if he would be all right by the time of the attack.” Derek weights in on the idea.  
  
“We don’t even know if he would survive.” Laura remind them.  
  
“Do I even have a say in this?” Stiles is so confused and a bit scare, so he just stays behind Dexter hoping this all crazy talk finishes soon.  
  
“Eliot just said you are pack, why wouldn’t you want to help your pack to survive?” The outrageous face, the smart-ass smile just makes Dexter have to control himself. Because if he lost control, he don’t even know what he was capable to do.  
  
“Stiles will not be forced to become a werewolf because we have a battle to pursue. And it’s not even about the time or the risks, it’s about the kind of pack we are. The kind of pack my parents created. Peter, get back to wherever you were and tell the others the attack is a go. Tell them to meet us here at sundown. And I will take it from there.”  
  
Peter shakes his head. “The pack won’t like this. They won’t like an alpha that puts them in risk because is sleeping with a druid…”  
  
Things escalated fast from there. Because in seconds all the werewolves are transformed and Peter is pressed against the wooden wall. The surprise and slightly fear in Peter’s face is just a bonus for Dexter and Stiles.  
  
“I don’t think that is an appropriate way to talk to your alpha, do you?” Eliot says, getting closer to the man. Laura and Derek release him when they see their brother has the situation under control. “You are my uncle and an important part of this pack. That’s the only reason I’m ignoring this. But if you ever question my authority again, you are done. Do you understand that? Was I clear enough?”  
  
Peter has his eyes wide open, finally noticing the alpha figure in front of him. Maybe Talia trained him better than he expected.  
  
“I understand.”  
  
Eliot gives two steps back and Peter arrange his jacket. He leaves the place without saying anything. When Eliot turns to the others, he can see the proud face in every one of them. He smiles. He didn’t even know how much he cared about their approval.   
  
“I still think is a very crap idea, but it’s your idea, so…” Laura shrugs, walking toward the exit of the basement. “Now we just wait.”  
  
There is not a lot of talks while they wait for the sun to go down. Derek is preparing himself outside, punching and kicking trees, trying to destroy the forest before destroying the hunters. He almost kick Dexter when the druid appears beside him.  
  
“What the hell, dude?” He says stopping his leg millimeters from Dexter’s face.  
  
“I was literally just passing by. You are the crazy one attacking poor inanimate beings. What did she do? Throw a leaf in your face?”  
  
“Don’t be sassy with the guy that can rip you apart.” Derek warns him, but has a small smile in the corner of his lips.  
  
“Yeah, you can try.” Dexter pads his shoulder, with a bigger laugh. “I don’t know if you noticed, but I’m kind of training. I did escape a house full of hunters.”  
  
“That was lucky. Very lucky.” Derek reminds him.  
  
“Maybe. Or it was the rabbit I killed before go in there.”  
  
Now Derek is full on laughing. “What is your problem with rabbits? Seriously, that is so weird.”  
  
“It was a sacrifice. People kill them for food!” He defends himself. “And it’s not like you guys don’t kill small animals when you transform. I heard stories.”  
  
“If your font of information is Stiles, you should ask another person. He is not the most reliable storyteller.”  
  
“Yeah, he is just the person I trust the must in the world.” Dexter says without realizing. Suddenly the air becomes heavier. He takes a big breath before continuing. “What you guys are going through… It’s horrible. I could say I can relate because I lost my parents, but… I can’t. She was not just your parent, she was your alpha, your guide, all that more intrinsic and complicate relationships that werewolves have that I don’t even understand.”  
  
He could see Derek closing himself up right in front of him, his expression changing from fun jokes to hide my emotions mode.  
  
“You don’t want to talk about, obviously, you are a Hale; I totally get it. But us, the Whites, we kind of talk. I can actually talk for you and for me, doing a pretty good impression of you, but that is not necessary. Because I just want to say it’s not your fault. I know this, Stiles know that, and your brother and sister know too. I just wish you knew as much as we do. That is it, I swear.”   
  
Dexter nods, feeling pretty accomplished. He talked and Derek didn’t ran away or threatened him. He didn’t responded, but that was still a win, right? He starts to walk back to the basement, but then remembers something. He turn to Derek again.  
  
“Another thing, your brother. He needs you. Like really needs you. Don’t isolate yourself. Help him.”  
  
“I thought you were doing that.”  
  
“I can only go so far…”  
  
Stiles is tying his shoes when the first werewolf found his way to the basement under the Nemeton. Soon there isn’t enough space to keep all of them. They go outside, where the moon is already shining in the sky. It’s not full yet, one more reason why they should wait. They didn’t hear Stiles, obviously.  
  
Eliot is nervous; Stiles can see that. Maybe the other werewolves of the pack couldn’t notice, the guys was fairly good in hiding his feelings, but Stiles could see. When the boy looks at Dexter, Laura and Derek, he notices they know too. He faces Eliot, in the middle of the small crowd that was getting together by the roots of the tree. He gives the guy an encouraging smile. It was the best he could do.  
  
“We have a goal here.” Eliot starts to say, putting a face of authority while talking to the pack. His pack. “We are going to find as many hunters as we can and make them feel just as we feel. The lost, the anger, the outrage. My father guide this pack and then my mother. Now the task is in my hand. And I hope all of you can see that I’m 100% dedicated to this pack. My mother died fighting to protect you guys and that’s a good enough way to die for me. But we are not gonna die. We are going to destroy them. One by one.”  
  
As soon as he finishes talking, people start to yell in agreement, some already transforming, mixing the screams with howls just making the all scene a lot scarier than before. Stiles got closer to Dexter.  
  
“I don’t like this.”  
  
“It’s gonna work. You will see.”  
  
Peter was right. It is easy to find the hunters. They are all scattered in the forest as soon as the sun go down. But they are not as unprepared as the werewolf predicted. In fact, the fight is brutal. The anger makes the werewolves ruthless, but they are also disorganized. They are fighting for all the wrong reasons, while the hunters know exactly what to do.  
  
Derek and Laura seem more centered. They are smart enough to protect each other while fighting, but the others werewolves just attack any one that shows up in front of them. There is a lot of blood. A lot of death.  
  
Eliot looks maniac. He is ready to die in that fight, not even trying to dodge the hunter’s attacks. He is just attacking aimlessly, trying to cause as much damaged as possible. The only damage he was doing was to himself.  
  
“We need to do something!” Stiles yells while running from one of the hunters that decided that attack the only human in the fight is actually a priority. He has a little package in his pocket, that is dropping powder all over the place. Dexter appears behind him, using his powers to throw the man against a tree. He hits it hard and lose conscience.   
  
“If you know a way to stop this much hunters and werewolves from killing themselves” he has to stop talking to push Stiles and avoid an arrow to hit his head, “I’m all hears.”  
  
“This is stupid, Derek!” He yells, but the guy is not listening. He is busy throwing one of the three hunters that were attacking his old brother.  
  
It don’t take long before the werewolves accept that it was a bad idea. They are trying to retrieve, but the hunters are not letting them. They think they can finish it tonight.  
  
“Stiles!” Dexter yells for the boy, that somehow ended up four trees away from the druid. “It’s time!”  
  
Stiles got the package that was still in his pocket. There is not much powder left, so he just throws it away from him, as far as he can. He sees Dexter doing the same. Then he repeats the words Dexter asked him too. He is not a druid, so he knows his eyes are not changing. But Dexter’s does. Then the creatures started to appear.  
  
From where the powder is placed, weird figures starts to form. It’s not quite human. It does not seem to have matter, like it’s only an illusion. But when they touch the hunters, it burns. They try to attack, but it’s useless. They can’t barely breathe. But even if they could, how to attack a creature with no matter? A form that does not seem to exist?  
  
The werewolves use the new situation to run. Peter is screaming, telling them to stay and fight, but he stops when Derek attacks him. He knows it will not last. They need to go. Now.  
  
Eliot is lost, still blinded with his fury. He still attacking the hunters when one of the deformed figure touches him. It burns just like it does to the hunters. Laura notices this and go after him. She is successful in dodging the creatures Dexter summed. She gets to her brother and pull him away.   
  
Laura is close enough to see when the creature evaporates. When the first hunter stop screaming. He can breathe again. He can even use his bow to throw an arrow across Dexter stomach. She can see the boy kneeling in the field and another hunter pulling him in the opposite direction. She can’t help him. She is carrying her brother, her alpha. So she lets him go. Let him being taken by the hunters.  
  



	13. The Plan

While his sister is dragging Eliot, he can’t even think. Maybe it’s his instincts, maybe is just the situation finally taking over, but he fights hard to get back at the field. Derek has to get back and help her and, even with that, the only reason they are able to take him away is because, even lost in his own pain and anger, he is not capable to hurt his family.  
  
They manage to throw the guy back in the basement of the Nemeton and they find Stiles there. He is siting, embracing his legs in a corner of the place. He was looking down but, when he hears the movement, he stares at them. “Dexter?”  
  
Derek is the one looking down now. He doesn’t even know how to explain what happened. “He was taken. He is with the hunters.”  
  
Those words get to Eliot and he stops moving. He starts to breathe until he is back to his human form. Derek looks at him and don’t see an alpha. He see his brother, who now carries the weight of the all world. And he can’t do nothing to help.  
  
Stiles’ reaction is the one really surprising. He don’t yell, he don’t say they have to go, that it was their faulty. He is just seating there, shaking his head, moving his mouth without really talking.  
  
Laura approaches him. “Stiles? He is gonna be okay, we are getting him out of there.”  
  
“No, we are not.” Stiles says. He looks at the werewolves, jumping from one to another. They seem worried. They seem as ready to get Dexter back as Stiles would be. They couldn’t. “Until now, everything has been according to plan….” He says more to himself then the other. “Now I just have to explain it. Do my part. Save everyone.”  
  
“Plan? What… plan?” Derek walk towards the human too, lowering his body so he could look Stiles in the eyes.  
  
Stiles stands up and Derek does the same. He walks to the center of the room and move his neck. He is not that excited about explaining all that.  
  
“First of all, don’t kill me, at least until I finish.” He asks. “Even better, don’t kill me, period. It’s really not even my fault and…”  
  
“Stiles!” Eliot almost growls.   
  
Stiles’ heart miss a beat.  “Okay, then. But you should know that I’m not that good explaining things under pressure, the sarcasm tend to overcome the other words and then…” He can see the werewolf is about to yell again. He stops. He breathes. “When you said Peter… Your uncle prepared the attack, we knew it was not a good idea. We told you guys, but you were so determinate to avenge your mother’s death, there was no way to put that idea out of your guys mind. So Dexter and I come up with another plan.  We did the spell for the smoke ghosts or whatever that thing was and when we used them, Dexter would find a way to be in the middle of the crossfire. He would be hit and taken by hunters to get inside their complex.”  
  
“And you agreed to that?” Derek could not believe this. How stupid could these kids be?  
  
“He didn’t really gave me much choice, Derek. I don’t know if you ever met Dexter, but when he puts an idea in his mind, as stupid as it may be, he just don’t give up. Especially when it is about saving the people he cares about.” Stiles puts his hands in his head. He never liked that idea. He is so worried he can’t barely bring himself to explain the rest.  
  
Laura goes at Stiles, putting her hands in his shoulders and making him look at her. “Okay, so he is inside the house of the Argents. What now?”   
  
“Well, Dexter is a different kind of druid. It’s a weird section of it that didn’t like so much the human sacrifice part. So they made a spell strengthen the connection between the soul and the body of one of them. Every time they needed a sacrifice, they used that person. Dexter is kind of like this…”  
  
“He can’t… die?” Eliot is confused. Everybody is.  
  
“Not exactly. He can die, we just don’t know when. He can die and come back one hundred times or just one, that is no way for us to predicted.”  
  
“How do you know all that?” Laura asks.  
  
“Is that really important now? Because I don’t think we have much time. The plan is that while he is being held captive by the Argents, he will manage to die. I don’t know, irritate them enough so they lose control, it’s not gonna be that hard with Kate being there. When he does that, it will unleash enough energy to complete a spell that will bring down every protection of the mansion. All the magical stuff that keep you guys out, as well as the mechanical and electronic alarms. It will all be gone for enough time for us to get inside, take control and end this. That is the plan.”  
  
Stiles feels the weight leaving his shoulder.  
  
“That’s the crazier thing I ever heard.” Laura shakes her head, disbelieve all over her face.   
  
“You guys are completely insane.” Derek accuses, passing his hand through his head.  
  
“So Dexter will be dead.” Eliot repeats, processing everything. “What happens if he don’t come back?”  
  
“He will come back.” Stiles says, again more to himself then the others.  
  
“Stiles!”  
  
“He dies!” The boy almost yell. He takes a deep breath. “If he does not come back, he dies.”  
  
Eliot, who is still sitting in the floor, embrace his legs just like Stiles did before. He is bigger than Stiles, so it seems harder for him. But he need the comfort. He needs to think.  
  
“You should have come to us before, tell us what he was planning to do.” Derek recriminates him.  
  
“What good would that do?” Laura defends Stiles. “Dexter is annoying enough, I bet he would convince us too. I don’t like this any more than you guys do, but he knows what he is doing. He knows what he is risking. What are we supposed to do? Let him die for nothing? We need to go there, we need to be ready to attack when…”  
  
“No, we don’t have to do anything. We don’t…” Eliot can’t even finish. “There is so much death, I don’t understand why he would do that, why he would…”  
  
“He left you a message.” Stiles interrupts him. He gets close and deliver the alpha his phone. “It’s in the voice mail. Just listen before making any decision, okay?”  
  
Eliot gets the phone and starts to walk outside. He don’t want his brother and sister to listen. If they were supposed to listen, Stiles would have said so. He gets far enough so the werewolf powers wouldn’t allow them to understand. He then starts to play it.  
   
"Hey, Eliot. I know you must be pretty pissed at me. And Stiles. Don’t kill Stiles, though. It's my fault. I had the idea; I decided to do it. He actually was against it. And I know, I know. This is a terrible idea. This can go wrong in so many different ways. But I know that is what I'm supposed to do. That is why I am here. I think by now Stiles explained the plan, but in case you threatened him enough to stop him from talking, the plan is simple. The hunters got me. They will try to break me and I will die. But it will be a necessary death. A sacrifice. Because when I do, all the defenses of the mansion will be gone. No more bad druids mojo, no alarms, nothing. Stiles will know when I die. He will know when to attack. And you go there and end this war.   
  
"I know you are sad about your mother and I'm so sorry about that. I know that it's a lot of responsibility, that the lives of the all pack are in your hands now. You don't think you are capable to handle this, but I know you are. I have seem you fight. I have seem you win and lose, laugh and cry, I know you. You can do this. Your mother was a great Alpha, but you still have something she didn’t have. You listen to people. You trust your pack. So I need you to trust me. Trust that I know what I'm doing.  
  
"I also have a few requests for you. I… don't know if I will survive. So, if the worst happens, you take care of Stiles. I know he and Derek are getting pretty close and Derek would not let anything happens to him, but Stiles draws trouble. He is human, I love him and I need you to take care of them, take care of everyone.  
  
"And if I am not there to help you, remember this. Be a strong Alpha, but be fair. Be compassionate and keep in mind that other people are important too. That that is enough death; you don't need to help that. I hope I come back, but I can't be sure. What I know is that if there is anybody worth coming back for, it's you. So I will try my best. You do the same."  
      
Eliot takes five minutes to get his thoughts straight. To center himself enough to deal with all that. He is an alpha. He was trained to deal with desperate situations like that. But somehow a druid took control and now he has no option but do what he wants. He is angry, proud and scared all at the same time. But when he gets back to the basement, he is just one thing: determinate.   
  
“Laura, you are coming with me. If I know the hunters, they will all be in the house playing with their new toy. That means we can go find the rest of the pack to explain what is going on. Derek, you stay here and go over the plan with Stiles again and again until it’s so stuck in your mind, you can do it in your sleep. That is no margin for error in this. We settle this now.”  
  
x.x.x  
  
When Dexter opens his eyes, he don’t recognize where he is. The room is all dark, with poor lights surround him. He tries to move. He can’t. Not only because of the strips of leather that are trapping him to the chair. Also because of all the foggy feeling he has. He is light headed and he notices a line in his veins. He follows the small tube until a bag full of liquid. He is being drugged.   
  
He tries to move again, shaking his body to try, and drop the chair. Nothing happens. He is not sure if the chair is nailed to the floor of if he just didn’t have enough force to move it. He is not sure he knows anything with all that chemicals going through his blood.  
  
He hears a door opening. He looks up to see Kate. She has a smile in her face, the kind that says ‘I gotcha you’. Dexter wants to punch it out of her.  
  
“Hello, little druid.” He pulls a chair and drag it. Puts it in front of him and seats. “How are you felling with all these drugs? Nice trip, huh?”  
  
Dexter takes a while to speak. First to form an actual sentence and then to move his lips. “Nice. Always good to be trapped in a room with a bitch.”  
  
She slaps him as hard as she can, her fingernails scratching Dexter’s cheek. He barely feels it.  
  
“Don’t make me kill you now, we have a science project to finish.” She makes a frown.  
  
Another while for the words to come out. “You can do it. You are good pretending to know things.”  
  
“Yes, I’m. But you? You do know them. That’s why you are here.” She pass her hand in his face, the mark of the scratch bright red in his cheek. “I need to know were the werepuppies are hidden. And you are gonna tell me.”  
  
“No, I’m… not…”  
  
“Yes, you are. Because I have a proposition you just can ignore.” She throws her body back, folding her arms. “If you tell us where they are, you brother stays alive. He is stupid, but he is just a human. We are willing to ignore his poor choices and keep him around. But only if you tell us where they are.”  
  
She is smart, Dexter need to give her that. She takes the only thing that can break him, the only person that makes him even think about it. He looks at the floor for a while, trying to organize his thoughts. It was so much harder with these drugs making everything fuggy.  
  
“All of that because of Derek?” Dexter says with a small smile in the corner of his lips. “He must be really good, huh?”  
  
“He is actually the best.” Kate says and shrugs. “Too bad you will never taste it.” She get really close to Dexter, so he can fell her breathe. The hunter wants to intimidate him, show him he is in power. He knows all that, he heard it all form another hunter. He would not be manipulated that easily. “Will you tell me or not? ‘Cause I can make you feel a lot of pain and…”  
  
“You don’t have the authority for this kind of deal, I know that. I want to talk to who is really in charge.”  
  
“Don’t you know that in the Argent family, the ladies are the leaders?”  
  
“I also know Gerard is here. You want a deal, I will talk to him.”  
  
x.x.x  
  
Back in the Nemeton, Stiles repeated the plan more times that he could count. At this point, it was stuck in his brain. He liked that idea when Eliot suggested it. He thought it would help him to stress a little less about it. It wasn’t quite like that. At this point, he is beating his feet in the floor, passing his hand in his hair, getting startled at every sound.  
  
Derek notices this. He notices the trouble to breathe, the anxiety.  
  
“Stiles, it’s gonna be okay.”  
  
“You don’t know that.” He repeats the same conversation they had a days ago, before the attack in the Hale’s house. “There is no way to know that.”  
  
“It’s a good plan. You and Dexter thought about everything, it’s going to work and then… We will be free of the hunters.”  
  
“My problem is not about the things we planned, but…” He stares at Derek. “Dexter did this to save me once. We were lucky and it worked. Now we hope for the same thing to happen again and… It’s just… He is the only thing I got, the only connection to my old life and…”  
  
“He is not…” Derek interrupts him. “The only thing you got. You have us. You have me.”  
  
They keep in the same position, trying to comfort each other. Derek is worried too. His life changed so much in the last day, he saw so many painful things happen right before his eyes, he didn’t want to lose a friend too. But even more than that, he realizes he didn’t want to see Stiles in pain either. When did he start to care so much about the guy? When did he start to feel the urge to comfort him, to hug him, to…  
  
Derek don’t even realize when he move. He gives a step forward, getting closer to Stiles. Without a warning, he touch his lips to the boy’s lips. They stay still for a while, both of them getting used to that idea. Stiles uses his hand to get them closer and intensify the kiss. Derek presses him against the wall, passing his arm around the boy’s hips.   
  
When they get separate, they don’t know what to say. They hear steps outside. Laura and Eliot arrived. And they need to go.  
  



	14. Time for Death

Dexter is left alone for a long time. At least that is what appears to him. It may be the drugs messing with his head. He is not sure. But he notices when Gerard get inside the room he was being kept. In fact, as soon as he saw the man, it was like all the drugs left his body for a second, all his senses of defense exploding. The man is dangerous, he can see it through his soulless eyes, through his aura of destruction.  
  
“You wanted to talk to me. I’m here.” He sits where Kate was seating before and fold his arms. He is ready to play. So is Dexter.  
  
“I know something. More important than the location of the werewolves. Something that can change everything.”  
  
“You really think you are the first to try and do something like that? You are just a stupid kid that go mixed with the wrong people. We are trying since you got to town to understand why you are so important to the Hales. You and your brother… You are not special. You don’t have any power. That is what I thought until you came to my house… Your exit? That was very entertaining. When we were looking for you, we found the rabbit you killed. For a sacrifice, I guess? That’s when we realized… a druid. Talia Hale had actually got a mini druid to help her. We knew then we had to attack. We knew then we had to get you. That’s why the drugs.”  
  
“So I can’t use my powers… I noticed that...” He has the same difficult to talk as before. But somehow, his head is clearer. Maybe it’s because he can feel the end. He can feel what he has to do.  
  
“Exactly. Now you are defenseless.”  
  
“That’s your problem. If you knew me, you would know that I’m not defenseless unless you kill me. Because right now I can see everything… All your pathetic little future. Did you know you die in six years? I don’t think you can see it now, but you have cancer. Or you will have. And all the monsters you killed, all the training you had will mean nothing when your own body start to deteriorated from inside out.”  
  
His expression don’t change. He don’t believe in a word the boy is saying. “You can’t play me, kid.”  
  
“I’m really not. I know exactly how your mind works. You will actually try to become a werewolf. Or something that keeps you from dying, because what you do was never about the cause, never about protection innocents. It was about killing. It was about you feeling more powerful than everyone else. You don’t even let your daughter be the leader, as she should be in your culture. You know she is just a psychotic bitch as messed up as you are. And she will die for this. She will be ripped apart, her flesh scattered through the floor when an alpha that she hurt decide to hurt her back.”  
  
That was the first time Gerard hit him. Dexter kept talking about all the terrible things that he knew it would happen to that family, all the things the others told him, from what he seem. Until he was hit enough for the chair to fell. Before it even touch the ground, he says the words. The same spell that broke his neck in a tub full of ice to save his friend’s parents. The same spell that makes Stiles know it’s time to attack.  
  
It’s faster than Stiles could ever predicted. He feels this wave going through his body. It makes every hair in his body to stand. “Now.”  
  
The werewolves yell before invading the house they were guarding for hours. This time, the hunters don’t even get a chance. They were so distracted taking care of their own lives, talking about how a kid could make Gerard so insanely angry to kill him before giving him the information.  
  
This time, the creatures are organize. They take the guards down, ripping their necks. Stiles don’t like that part. When the smell of blood get to his nose, he almost throw up. He keeps it inside. They could not stop.  
  
Some of the werewolves stay hidden next to the entrance, preparing for more hunters to get there. The others enter the house, covering room for room, killing everyone that were in front of them. They hear the yells from inside the house. The hunters are fighting now, but they are outnumbered. They don’t have a chance.  
  
When Eliot and Derek get to the last room, the door is locked. Through the glass on the door, he can see Gerard is there. So is Kate and a family they didn’t know. A man, a woman and a little girl. Also, Dexter’s body.  
  
It’s no trouble for them to take the door down. They get actually surprised in how much fight those people still have. The man is protecting the little kid, but Gerard, Kate and the woman has their weapons ready. They start the bloody attack, Kate being able to pass through Derek stomach with her dagger. He screams when the blood leave his body and a drop of it falls in Dexter’s face.  
  
Eliot is trying to fight Gerard and the woman and, despite the strength and aggressiveness of the alpha, he still has difficulty. He manages to disarm the woman and throw her against a wall. Gerard uses the moment to hit him with is electric stick. It makes Eliot scream, all the muscle of his body writhe. Derek sees that and tries to help his brother, using his claws to attack Gerard. He manages to hit the man, but the electricity filled his body too.  
  
The fight gets unfair when the other werewolves of the pack manage to get inside. Peter is vicious and go straight to the man and the child.  The other divided between Kate and Gerard. They are surrounded. Eliot has a smile in his face when he uses his claws to tear Gerard’s neck.   
  
Kate screams and the man hold the child, pulling her next to him. He tries to hide her face, keep her from seeing the blood escaping the man’s body. Eliot is about to go to Kate when Stiles get in the room.  
  
“Stop!” He yells and all the werewolves look at him. “That is not how it was supposed to happen.”  
  
Derek gets back to human. “What are you talking about?”  
  
“That’s the last part of our plan, the final deal. You don’t have to kill each other. Nobody else needs to die.”  
  
“If you ever think this is…”  
  
“Shut up, Kate. I’m not talking to you.” He turn to the man holding the kid. He presses his body closer to the wall.   
  
“Kill me, just leave her alone…”  
  
“I swear to God, that is what I’m trying to do.” He says to the man he knows from his past. The man that saved Stiles’ life just like the boy saved his. “All this killing, that’s not how the code is supposed to be applied. You can see that, right? You can see that is not how it was supposed to be?”  
  
“These are werewolves.” Chris says, hugging his daughter even closer. “They are monsters.”  
  
“No, your father, he is the monster.” Eliot says, the anger still combusting in his body.  
  
“You just killed him in front of me!” The man accuses him.  
  
“And that is gonna be the last death of the day.” Stiles announces. “Because beginning now this pack will have a deal with the hunters. The pack will not kill unless they are protecting themselves. And the hunters will leave them alone.” He turns to Eliot. “You can deal with this? You can keep them from killing?”  
  
Peter laughs before saying. “We are not letting a human kid decides…”  
  
“Shut up, Peter!” Eliot replies. He faces Stiles. “This pack does not kill. You have my word.”  
  
Stiles turn to Chris. “You guys will leave a hunter ambassador, someone to keep you guys informed and be sure that the pack is following their promise. The ambassador will not meddle in the business of the pack, but will be around. Can you do that? Can you be that ambassador? Can you keep the other hunters to search for revenge?”  
  
“I don’t know if I can…” The man admits.  
  
“I can help, but I can make miracles.” He now talks to everyone. “If what you guys want is blood, than everybody is as good as dead. There will be other hunters, there will be others packs, and this fight will end when that is nobody else alive to fight it. Don’t you guys understand that? Do you really need a defenseless 147 pounds teenager to see that? Just kill yourself and solve this already. If you want to live, if you want peace… Take this deal. Work this out. Please.”  
  
They look at Chris, all of the people in the room. He stares at his father’s body, he sees his sister still fighting to release herself from the arms of Laura. His wife in the other side of the room, unconscious. His daughter, still embracing him, so scared. He don’t want that for her. He don’t want her to become his father. As hard it is to admit, he don’t want her to become his sister. So he nods.  
  
The eyes turn to Eliot. He comes back to his human form. He nods too. All the werewolves do the same. The alpha starts to walk towards Chris. He raise his hand, ready to shake the hand of the man in front of him. Confirm an alliance never seen before. An alliance between werewolves and hunter created by a human. And people say Stiles is defenseless.  
  
Chris raise his hand, still hugging his daughter with the other one. He barely sees when Kate gets lose from Laura’s grip. She runs towards Eliot, a dagger in her hand. Before she can attack the boy, though, she is knocked out by a piece of wood being throw in the middle of her face. Stiles has the biggest smile in the world when he looks to Chris.  
  
“You do need to take care of her.”  
  
They finally shake hands, sealing the deal. The deaths were over.  
  



	15. It’s time to go

It takes 36 hours for Dexter to wake up again. Stiles was going insane. He didn’t know how long it would take, he didn’t know if he could do something to accelerated the process, but he kept hoping. He stopped the other from burying him. And then he waked.  
  
They stayed in Peter’s house while the rebuild of the mansion happened. The hunters were warn, that pack is not to be touched. In a matter of days the only one around was Chris and his wife. Kate left too. Stiles still thinks she can come back and cause problems. He tells that to Chris. He says he will keep her away.  
  
Dexter does his best to help with the injured from the fight. He even helps Deaton, the veterinarian of the city and something more that nobody really understood, taking care of them, using his magic to help. He learned a lot in that time.  
  
Laura gets very annoyed when she realizes the relationships forming between the boys. Eliot and Dexter she knew from before, but Stiles and Derek? It was just so weird to see her younger brother kissing Stiles under a tree. He is not the most romantic creature, though. Stiles has to push him out of his head from time to time. Maybe that’s exactly the reason why that worked. Stiles pushing him out, Derek pushing Stiles in.  
  
The reconstruction of the house takes exactly two months. The use of the werewolf manpower, with the help of a druid, makes the thing goes faster than ever. Peter would move in, though, since now he was the legal guardian of the kids. Dexter don’t like the idea. Not in the slightly.  
  
It’s surprising how Dexter and Eliot are the ones who fight the most. Eliot is still struggling with his duties as an alpha, being able to have the authority and also listening to other people’s opinions. Dexter and Stiles are very opinionated, so they do make things more difficult. That was the main reason Dexter left the house that day, before he killed the alpha and made Laura the new queen of the pack. Nobody would be able to deal with that development.  
  
He walks aimless through the woods, letting the wind, the trees or whatever he could find guide his path. He is trying really hard not to think. Without realizing, he gets to the river. It’s a wam day, so he even considers going to a swim. He gives up when he sees a kid there. It was a little boy and it appear to be eight, nine years old. Maybe more. Dexter don’t like kids that age. They are just… weird.  
  
He decides to sit nearby, staring the horizon, hearing the kid’s play in the water. He stays there for about twenty minutes before something gets his attention. The noise of the kid… stops. Dexter stands up, looking for him. He looks at the car parked next to the border of the river. A woman is there, talking to the phone, facing the forest. He then see a glimpse of the kid. He is under water. He is not moving.  
  
Dexter don’t have time to think. He runs to the water and jump inside. He gets to the kid, who by now it’s not moving, and drag him to the border. He can hear the mother reaction, a scream with the name of the kid. Dexter. He looks up and almost lost his balance when he sees her. His mother.   
  
“Dexter!” She says again, pushing the older boy away. She starts CPR and Dexter sits in the ground, tears appearing in his face without him being able to control. The boy cough twice before water comes out of his mouth. He starts to breathe again and when sees his mother, he starts to cry. He hugs her and she shakes him, her fear and despair being dismissed in that hug. She looks to her side, to thank the boy who saved her son’s life. All she sees is his back while he runs away from there.  
  
He get inside the house and ignore when Laura calls him. He goes straight to Stiles room. The boy is not there. So he sits in the floor, trying to organize his thoughts. Again. God, their lives are complicated.  
  
When Stiles get inside his room, he has Derek glued to his face. He has his hand under Derek’s shirt and begin to kiss his neck when the werewolf open his eyes. He pushes Stiles, who almost fell.  
  
“Dude, what the…” He stops talking when Derek points to the corner with his head.   
  
“Dex?” He says approaching the supposed brother. He is looking at the wall opposite to him, like he didn’t notice their presences there. He puts his hands in Dexter’s shoulders and shake him a little, trying to get him back to reality. “Dexter!”  
  
“Stiles.” He snaps out of his mind and look at his friend. “I saved me, Stiles. I saved me and the world did not end and we should not be here…”  
  
“Dex…” He sits in the floor in front of the druid. “I don’t understand what you are talking about…”  
  
“I…” Dexter stops talking. He faces Derek, who is also trying to understand what is going on. “You need to go.”  
  
“What? I’m not…”  
  
“Please?”  
  
Derek don’t want to go, but obey. He knows Dexter enough to let him talk whatever he wanted to talk. But he stands outside the door, waiting for his time to hear the explanation.  
  
Stiles sighs. “Okay, what now?”  
  
“I completely forgot about that, Stiles, I don’t know how I…” He smacks his own head and Stiles gets scared by that. His friend is about to have a mental breakdown.  
  
“Stop that, just…” He says getting Dexter’s arms and holding them. “Talk.”  
  
“At this very day, when I was ten years old, I was swimming with my mother. She received a call in her car and she went to answer it. While she was looking through the other side, I hit my head in a rock. I was unconscious and started to drown. She saw that and got me out of the water. She revived me and then I was fine. I just got the younger version of myself off the river, Stiles. I touched my own version and that’s not supposed to happen, that’s not possible. You saw Doctor Who, the universe was supposed to explode!”  
  
“So you are mad because the universe didn’t exploded?”  
  
“No! Don’t you see? If I can do that, if I can interact with another version of myself, that means we are not in our universe. We thought we were changing our future, but we are not. I think we created a parallel universe with different consequences for the war between the pack and the hunters. So here, we managed to save them. Well, most of them. But there, in our universe, they are still dead. Do you understand?”  
  
Stiles don’t know how to respond. “This is crazy!”  
  
“Crazier than coming back in time? Than werewolves and druids? Are you serious?”  
  
“Parallel universes, different versions of ourselves? Yeah, that’s nuts!”  
  
“Then let’s get back to the future. We did what we were supposed to do here, we save the Hale pack. If I’m right, we will get back to a future just like ours. If not, we just find them back there.”  
  
“You want to get back? Now?” Stiles pass his hands through his hair. “You can’t be serious, what about Derek and Eliot? We just leave and say nothing?”  
  
“Do you want to explain to them how we lie to them since we got here? I’m not too eager to have that conversation.”  
  
“Then we just live here. This is a good place; everybody is safe. I can see my dad from time to time; you can see your parents. We can be fine and safe.”  
  
“You didn’t even wanted to stay!”  
  
“Well, it was different before, right?” He says before shaking his head. He knows Dexter is right. He has been thinking about it for weeks now. There is no way they could live in that place and watch other versions of themselves growing up in front of them, with them. He is just not sure he is ready to give up on everything they have there.  
  
“What about our friends? Scott, Allison, Lydia? What if they need us? We don’t know what is going on there, we didn’t left in the best possible moment. I just feel like we don’t have a choice here.” Dexter shrugs, happy that he can sound sane again.  
  
“Do we say goodbye or…”  
  
“I don’t know… I can leave him a voicemail? I think is suiting.”  
  
They use the window to leave the house and not have to answer any of Derek’s question. They get separated and says their goodbyes, preserving each other’s privacy. Then they got together in the roots of the Nemeton.  
  
“It’s a very dick move we are doing, don’t you think?” Stiles says when Dexter cuts his hand to put the blood in the bowl, just like he did before.  
  
“At least if they hate us, they will be able to move on. If this works, when we wake up, that basement will be destroyed.”  
  
“If it does not work, we will have very confused boyfriends.” Stiles smile.  
  
Dexter takes a deep breath to begin the spell. But before, he looks at Stiles, smiling. “Won’t it be so weird to see Derek now that you make out with another version of him?”  
  
“I was just thinking that!” Stiles laughs at the thought. “You can’t tell him that, though. We just got to a point where I don’t think he is about to kill me whenever I talk. I don’t wanna add any weirdness at this.”  
  
“I won’t say anything, I promise. But you can tell him that I was with his dead brother either.” He meant it as a joke, but he couldn’t laugh. It was the first time he fully accepted he would never see Eliot again. He turns to Stiles. “That sucks.”  
  
“It does…” Stiles pats his shoulders. “But it’s time for us to go home.”  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really hope you guys liked it. I fulled intent to make a sequel of this, with Dexter and Stiles getting back to this parallel universe in the year Scott gets transformed, which would be like the time the show happen. I have a lot of the plot developed in my mind, but i will only be able to write it after i finished the version of the 3B with Dexter in it. You are, of course, all invited to read this too.
> 
> Thanks for everything and I see you in the next one xD


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